YSR Congress MP questioned in Viveka murder case

HYDERABAD

A large number of followers from Pulivendula in Kadapa district of Andhra Pradesh gathered outside the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) office at Sultan Bazar here on Saturday when Kadapa MP of YSR Congress Party Y.S. Avinash Reddy walked inside to face examination by CBI sleuths in the four-year-old murder case of former Kadapa MP and former AP Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy’s brother Vivekananda Reddy.

The Supreme Court had a few months ago transferred the investigation in the case from the sessions court at Kadapa to the Principal court of CBI at Nampally here on a plea by Vivekananda Reddy’s daughter. She had expressed doubts about fair trial in the case as long as it remained in Andhra Pradesh. The Principal CBI court took cognizance of the main and supplementary charge-sheets in the case this month and issued notices to five accused to appear before it on February 10.

On January 22, the CBI, which had already recorded the statements of 248 witnesses, served a notice on Avinash Reddy at Pulivendula to appear before it here as another witness on January 25. But, he expressed his inability to do so for five more days due to prior commitment. When the second notice to appear on January 28 was served on him two days later, he agreed to go.

Avinash Reddy met his cousin and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jaganmohan Reddy’s mother Vijayamma at her Lotus Pond residence here before proceeding to the CBI office. His followers had already crowded near the CBI office by then, prompting police to step in with additional force.

His interrogation lasted four-and-a-half hours from 3 p.m. without the CBI either conceding his request for audio and video recording of proceedings or the presence of his lawyers. On coming out after interrogation, he told mediapersons that he had clarified all the doubts of the agency and assured to come back whenever required. He refused to go into further details.