CBI seeks to cancel bail to Jagan Mohan Reddy for ‘influencing witnesses’

Hyderabad: In what could significantly change the political landscape of Andhra Pradesh once again, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has sought to cancel the bail granted to YSR Congress president YS Jagan Mohan Reddy after nearly three-anda-half years.

The Central agency moved the special CBI court last week for cancellation of Reddy’s bail accusing him of trying to influence witnesses and thereby violating the terms on which he was given the bail. Jagan, who has been out on bail since September 2013, had spent 16 months in jail following his arrest in May 2012.

The CBI, while arresting Jagan, had accused him of amassing huge wealth by misusing the office of his late father YS Rajasekhara Reddy when he was chief minister of Andhra Pradesh for six years till September 2009. Jagan obtained bail at a time when the parties in erstwhile AP saw a vertical split on the regional lines ahead of bifurcation of the state in June 2014 to carve out Telangana.


The ruling Telugu Desam party president and Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu had accused the then ruling Congress government in erstwhile undivided Andhra Pradesh of colluding with the YSR Congress to arrange the bail for Jagan.

In a petition filed in the special court, CBI argued that the recent ‘arranged interview’ by the witnesses in the media entities of Jagan contradicted their earlier statements provided to the investigating agencies. The court, while admitting the CBI petition, has posted the case for hearing on April 7.