Mantris get Kiran’s backing

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Starting from Monday, the CBI will begin interrogating ministers who were involved in issuing GOs pertaining to allotment of lands and favouring concessions to industries in the Jagan assets case. The line of defence the ministers are likely to take is that their decisions were in line with the government’s policies and that the then Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy brought pressure on them to comply.

Excise minister Mopidevi Venkata Ramana will be present before the CBI team on Monday. Sureedu, the additional personal secretary to YSR will also appear before the CBI tomorrow. Sources said the CBI will complete questioning of the remaining ministers before the Supreme Court takes up the hearing in July of the Special Leave Petition filed by advocate P. Sudhakar Reddy. The SLP questions why the CBI did not bother to question six ministers and eight IAS officers who have actually issued the GOs pertaining to various allotments to industries

Home Minister Sabita Indra Reddy has already been questioned about the allotment of mines when she was minister, mines. R&B minister Dharmana Prasada Rao, who was then revenue minister, and excise minister Mopidevi Venkata Ramana, who was then infra and ports minister, have already been questioned. Mr Venkata Ramana is being questioned for a second time. IT minister Ponnala Lakshmaiah (the then major irrigation minister), agriculture minister Kanna Lakshminarayana (the then industries minister), and current and former industries minister J. Geeta Reddy are also to be questioned.

Chief Minister N. Kiran Kumar Reddy has reportedly assured ministers who called on him that nothing will happen to them and his government will defend them as he believed they did not violate any rules. The CM reportedly told them that after thorough verification of the relevant files by him, he came to the conclusion that six ministers had no role except that they followed either policy decisions or instructions from YSR.

For example, Mr Venkata Ramana did not participate in a high-level meeting called by YSR at which the decision was taken to allot lands to Vanpic promoted by Nimmagadda Prasad, which is in question now. It seems that the CBI wants to complete the questioning of the ministers and IAS officials so it can reply to the SC when it take up the SLP in July after the summer vacation.