The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Liquor case: no probe against Naidu now

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Dec 11, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Liquor case: no probe against Naidu now

By J. Venkatesan

NEW DELHI, DEC. 10. The Supreme Court, which on December 6 stayed an order of the Andhra Pradesh High Court quashing the investigation ordered by the Principal Special Judge, Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) cases, against the former Chief Minister, N. Chandrababu Naidu, and 17 others in a corruption case to the tune of Rs. 550 crores, today vacated that interim order. Hence, no investigation could be proceeded against Mr. Naidu and others.

Acting on a complaint from a Congress activist, Krishna Kumar Goud, the special court in December, 2003, referred the matter for investigation under the Prevention of Corruption Act and the provisions of the Indian Penal Code for conferring pecuniary advantage on certain distilleries during 1997-98 to 1999-2000.

A Bench of Justice K.G. Balakrishnan and Justice Tarun Chatterjee, while staying the High Court order, had paved the way for further investigation. It issued notice to the State Government, T. Nageswara Rao, former Excise Minister, and Veerabhadraiah, (IAS), former Managing Director of Andhra Pradesh Beverages Corporation Limited, on a Special Leave Petition filed by the Congress activist, Krishna Kumar Goud, challenging the High Court order. On behalf of Mr. Nageswara Rao and Mr. Veerabadraiah, counsel — Harish salve, Altaf Ahmed and P.S. Narasimha — brought to the notice of the court that no interim relief was sought by the petitioner, for stay of the High Court judgment and hence they pleaded for vacating the interim order. The Bench accepted the submission and vacated the interim stay.

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