Y S Vivekananda Reddy murder case: SC sets aside HC's order allowing CBI to quiz Kadapa MP in Q&A form

The top court also set aside the Telangana High Court's order protecting him from arrest

The Supreme Court on Monday took an exception to Telangana High Court's direction to the CBI to quiz Kadapa MP Y S Avinash Reddy in Q and A form in 2019 murder case of former Minister Y S Vivekananda Reddy.

"If this is the standard of investigation then it is better to wind up the CBI. Imagine, other accused will cite this as precedent," the top court said as it set aside the High Court's order also protecting the politician from arrest.

"This is like rewriting the criminal law jurisprudence," a bench of Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justice P S Narasimha said on the High Court's premature findings and the extraordinary order directing the CBI to interrogate him in Q and A form and hand over the questionnaires to him.

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"The order of this nature will stultify investigation. The High Court cannot order investigation of a suspect should be in written form. It was completely inappropriate for the HC to order this questionnaire to be given to first respondent. Such orders prejudice the investigation especially when CBI is ascertaining the role of several accused. Thus directions of the HC was unwarranted," the bench said.

While rejecting a plea by Avinash Reddy to protect him, the bench also extended the deadline of April 30 to June 30 for the CBI to complete its probe.

"In this case, we had to say the High Court cannot pass such orders. We were really perturbed by the HC order. If CBI had to arrest you they would have done earlier. The CBI has shown utmost restraint," the bench told MP's counsel senior advocate Ranjit Kumar who said the court should protect as the matter was coming up for hearing before the HC on Tuesday.

Senior advocate Sidharth Luthra, appearing for Dr Suneetha Narreddy, daughter of the deceased, questioned the High Court's order of April 18, saying this would become an exercise in futility if order like this was passed. "This is absolute absurdity and complete lawlessness," he said.

The HC had directed the YSRCP MP to appear before the CBI everyday for examination in the case pertaining to the murder of Y S Vivekananda Reddy, and granted him protection from arrest till April 25.

Vivekananda Reddy, one of the brothers of the late Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy, was found murdered at his residence in Pulivendula in Kadapa district, on the night of March 15, 2019, weeks before the Assembly elections in the State.

The petitioner claimed the investigation has revealed that the scene of offence was cleaned and the wounds on the body were wrapped up with bandages to give credence to the story of death due to a heart attack allegedly in the presence and at the behest of Y S Avinash Reddy, Y S Bhaskar Reddy and D Shiva Shankar Reddy, among others.