Even though there is no official statement on the cases behind the searches, sources said they may have had a link with the seizure of two expensive watches worth ₹1.73 crore at the Chennai International Airport on 5 February which were allegedly set to reach Srinivasa Reddy's son Harsha Reddy.
Published Sep 27, 2024 | 3:10 PM ⚊ Updated Sep 27, 2024 | 3:10 PM
Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy. (Twitter)
In an early morning swoop on Friday, 27 September, the sleuths of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) descended on Telangana Revenue and Housing Minister Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy’s residence in Jubilee Hills in Hyderabad and initiated a search operation.
Upon arrival in Hyderabad, the ED officials split themselves into teams and searched Srinivasa Reddy’s residence and several locations connected with him, including his daughter’s and the companies owned by his kin.
According to sources, as many as 16 teams examined documents obtained from these locations. The officials made the searches while the CRPF forces stood guard in anticipation of trouble.
Even though there is no official statement on the cases behind the searches, sources said they may have had a link with the seizure of two expensive watches worth ₹1.73 crore at the Chennai International Airport on 5 February which were allegedly set to reach Srinivasa Reddy’s son Harsha Reddy.
The expensive watches were the Patek Philipe 5740 and Breguet 2759. They were seized while being smuggled into India from Singapore through Chennai. The Customs had said that Harsha Reddy was to buy the watches from one Mubeen through a middleman Alokam Naveen Kumar.
Naveen spilled the beans on the identity of the end buyer Harsha Reddy during interrogation by the customs officials.
He had admitted to acting as a go-between and ensured payments through cryptocurrency and cash through the hawala route to the seller. However, Harsha Reddy denied all the allegations.
The Madras High Court, while denying anticipatory bail to Naveen, cited the records that showed the smuggling of luxury watches worth ₹100 crore to India over a period of time.
(Edited by Muhammed Fazil)
