The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday arrested three accused in a case of liquor offenses that allegedly occurred during the erstwhile YSR Congress regime in Andhra Pradesh, people familiar with the matter said.
A special PMLA (Prevention of Money Laundering Act) court at Nampally in Hyderabad on Wednesday granted three-day remand to the accused — former AP government advisor Kesireddy Rajasekhar Reddy alias Raj Kesireddy, former managing director of Andhra Pradesh State Beverages Limited (APSBCL) D Vasudeva Reddy, and Sunil, son of former minister Karumuri Nageswara Rao.
Based on the court order, the accused was detained for questioning for three days. “They were shifted from Chanchalguda Central Jail to the ED office for interrogation,” an official aware of the developments said.
These three accused were arrested by TED on June 11 after day-long raids at their residences and offices and were produced before a PMLA court, which remanded them to judicial custody.
There were allegations that hundreds of crores were traded in the liquor case. The central agency reportedly found that the money was transferred through hawala and money laundering channels.
The ED is conducting the investigation on the basis of the Special Investigation Team (SIT) report. According to the ED, its investigations revealed that physical cash kickbacks were collected and stored at multiple locations in Hyderabad, where they were later transported, distributed or disposed of by cash handlers appointed to the syndicate.
ED investigation revealed a financial impact of $Rs 1,048.45 crore in commissions. Many distilleries were forced to make these payments in various forms, including cash and gold, as well as through some distilleries being monitored and operated by the Alcoholic Beverages Guild.
In addition, financial benefits were obtained from transporting liquor. The ED is investigating alleged irregularities in the award of liquor transportation contracts. According to the agency, the government suffered losses estimated at approximately $195 crore after modifying the tender conditions for liquor transportation contracts in violation of applicable norms.
During the three-day custodial interrogation, investigators are expected to question the accused about the tender process, financial transactions, money transfers and other key aspects of the alleged fraud in a bid to gather more evidence.
