A bench took note of the submissions assailing the grant of interim anticipatory bail to the leader in the sensational murder case.
Published Apr 20, 2023 | 12:49 PM ⚊ Updated Apr 20, 2023 | 12:49 PM
YS Avinash Reddy. (Twitter)
The Supreme Court will, on Friday, 21 April, hear an appeal challenging the grant of protection from arrest till 25 April to YSRCP MP YS Avinash Reddy in a case pertaining to the murder of his uncle and former Andhra Pradesh minister YS Vivekananda Reddy.
A Supreme Court bench comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justice PS Narasimha took note of the submissions of senior advocate Siddharth Luthra assailing the grant of interim anticipatory bail to Avinash Reddy in the sensational murder case.
“We will list it for hearing tomorrow,” the bench said on Thursday.
The apex court’s decision came on a petition by Viveka’s daughter, Dr Narreddy Suneetha, who had in the past alleged that Avinash Reddy was hampering the CBI probe.
Vivekananda Reddy, popularly known as Viveka, is also the paternal uncle of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy.
He was found murdered in his Kadapa home in March 2019.
The Telangana High Court had, on 18 April, directed the YSRCP MP to appear before the CBI every day for examination in the case pertaining to the murder of Vivekananda Reddy and granted him protection from arrest till 25 April.
In an interim order on the anticipatory bail plea of Avinash Reddy, the court asked him to cooperate with the central investigative agency and appear before it daily till 25 April.
YSRCP MP Avinash Reddy appeared before the CBI in connection with the murder case of his uncle and former MP YS Vivekananda Reddy for the fifth time on Wednesday.
The CBI grilled him, his father YS Bhaskar Reddy, who is already in custody, and their alleged accomplice Uday Kumar Reddy, for eight hours — both separately and together, according to CBI sources.
The questioning was audio-video recorded as per the direction of the high court.
In the remand report of Uday Kumar Reddy, the CBI said Avinash Reddy, along with the other accused, hatched a larger conspiracy to eliminate Vivekananda Reddy.
It said an attempt was made to destroy evidence in the bathroom where Vivekananda Reddy was found dead with grievous head injuries in his Kadapa house on the intervening night of 14 and 15 March, 2019.
Soon after Vivekananda Reddy’s death, Bhaskar Reddy and Avinash Reddy’s names figured in the murder case that created a sensation before the Assembly elections in Andhra Pradesh in 2019.
Bhaskar Reddy has been charged under Sections 120B (conspiracy), 302 (murder) and 201 (causing disappearance of evidence) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) as he played a crucial role in the case, according to the CBI.
The probe agency believes he had spoken to the accused before and after the murder.
According to the CBI, the father and son hatched the plot to murder Vivekananda Reddy and sheltered the accused.
Their associate Shiva Shankar played a crucial role in erasing evidence, the CBI said in a response filed before the court to oppose the bail of Sunil Yadav, who is an accused in the case.
The CBI also said that a ₹40 crore “supari” (contract to kill) was offered to the accused to eliminate Viveka.
The Supreme Court last November transferred the case from Andhra Pradesh to a Special CBI Court in Hyderabad for investigation and trial into the conspiracy behind the murder case.
In his anticipatory bail petition filed before the Telangana High Court, Avinash Reddy has contended that the central investigating agency, after giving several versions of what happened after the death of Vivekananda Reddy, and was trying to level unfounded allegations against him and others.
“There is absolutely no acceptable legal evidence on record or any other incriminating material to connect me with the alleged offence,” he said.
He has alleged that the CBI’s previous investigating officer (IO) threatened witnesses on multiple occasions with fear of incarceration and worse to ensure that Avinash Reddy was framed through the statements of such witnesses.
Avinash Reddy, in the anticipatory bail petition, also said that Viveka was forced undertake land settlements and start a diamond business with his close associates, accused in his murder case, to earn money for his and his second family’s survival.
Avinash Reddy further said the family of Vivekananda removed his cheque signing powers and made him suffer financially for his and his second family’s survival needs.
The investigation clearly revealed that the deceased married a young woman named Shaik Shameem in 2011 and they had a son named Shaik Shahensha, added Avinash Reddy.
(With PTI inputs)
