NELLORE: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has intensified its probe into the theft of material from the IV Additional Judicial First Class Magistrate Court in Nellore pertaining to a case in which Agriculture Minister Kakani Govardhan Reddy was involved. CBI officials visited Nellore city and recorded the statement of senior TDP leader Somireddy Chandramohan Reddy, complainant of the case. The CBI is likely to record the statements of a few others related to this case.
Addressing the media on Friday, Somireddy said CBI officials Nirmala Devi and Ananthakrishnan questioned him for more than one-and-a-half hours and asked him to submit a written complaint next week. Citing the Delhi Uphaar tragedy, he hoped that the accused would get the maximum punishment for stealing evidence from the court.
“Kakani had created fake documents to prove that I amassed huge assets for damaging the image of my family. There are 17 courts in the Nellore court complex, which are having more than 15,000 files pertaining to various cases. Of them, the evidence, which was submitted to the court went missing,” Somireddy said.
It may be recalled that Kakani accused Somireddy of amassing a huge wealth through illegal means. He tried to prove the allegation by releasing a few documents in December 2017.
Responding to the charge, Somireddy lodged a complaint with the police stating that the documents released by Kakani were forged. Based on his complaint, a chargesheet was also filed. The material presented to the court in the case was stolen on April 14, 2022, soon after Kakani became a minister.
The miscreants stole a bag containing documents, stamps and electronic items. Based on a complaint lodged by the court staff, Nellore police filed a case. In November 2022, the AP High Court directed the CBI to probe the theft case.