Comments
After over a year of silence, the controversial `Vote for Note’ scam that allegedly involved the Telugu Desam Party and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, has surfaced again. The sudden move by the Chief Minister of Telangana State K Chandrasekhara Rao to hold a review meeting on Monday to appraise himself of the progress of the case, which happened during the by-elections to the Legislative Council in May 2015, has raised eyebrows in political circles.
The renewed interest in the case triggered by the apex court’s query has raised speculation on mainly two counts -- the immediate timing that coincided with the meeting of Finance Ministers of 11 states in Amaravati on Monday. The Telangana Government had abstained from it. Secondly, the long-term impact the case can have on the election fortunes of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) in Telangana, where it already stands drastically cut to size and its chief, Naidu, in AP in the 2019 elections.
The move raised immediate criticism from TDP leaders, including Somi Reddy and Varla Ramaiah, who questioned the need for a review by the Telangana CM when the matter was pending in the courts. This was countered by leaders of the Telangana Rastra Samithi (TRS), who said the Chief Minister has the right to review any case, including the `Vote for Note’.
For the record, the case is pending in the Supreme Court. The key allegations were that the TDP leader, Revanth Reddy (now in Cong (I)), had offered money to nominated MLC Stephenson in exchange for a vote to the TDP nominee. In the ensuing telephonic conversation, the voice of Naidu is purportedly recorded. The video recording and other evidence with the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) of Telangana, made their way to the media.
The ACB, which conducted the probe, handed over the voice recordings to the Forensic Lab, which in turn, in its report is said to have confirmed that the voice was indeed that of the TDP chief. Later, another accused, Mathaiah Jerusalem, petitioned the Supreme Court that he would turn approver.
At a press conference today Mathaiah demanded that all those involved in the scam and phone tapping, even if it was CMs, should be convicted. Revanth Reddy faulted KCR on the political front, stating that he should have first gone to Amaravati and met Naidu and extended support in his fight against the BJP government if his attempts to form an alternative front were serious.
Instead of bringing together all parties against the BJP and Cong (I), the Telangana CM was meeting UPA partners includinng TMC, SP, DMK and not NDA allies, which raises questions about his intentions, Revanth, the top TDP leader, who quit and joined the Cong (I), alleged.
Political analysts see an immediate `embarrassment’ for Naidu and opening up of one more front, as he is already battling the Centre, the fall-out of parting ways with the BJP and growing heat from the opposition YSR Congress on the issue of Special Category status to AP.
On the other hand, KCR has been making moves to play a prominent role in forging a non-BJP, non-Cong(I) front, with major opposition parties. He has upstaged Naidu, who had been nursing hopes of reviving a third front and this acceleration in the investigation of the case could further put the TDP chief in a spot.
Comments
COMMENT NOW
Comments
Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.
We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.