CM 'shielding' TDP leaders in liquor scam, targeting oppn: YSRCP

Nellore: Senior YSRCP leader K Govardhan Reddy on Wednesday accused Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu of orchestrating a political conspiracy in the spurious liquor case “to protect the TDP-run liquor mafia while falsely implicating opposition leaders.”

Reddy alleged that the fake liquor network expanded only after the NDA coalition government came to power and is directly linked to several TDP leaders and close aides of Naidu and IT Minister Nara Lokesh.

“The Chandrababu Naidu-led government is shielding the real masterminds of the fake liquor mafia while framing YSRCP leaders through scripted videos,” Reddy alleged, speaking to reporters here.

He claimed that the government’s own excise officials confirmed that illegal manufacturing units were busted at Mulakalacheruvu and a major storage godown was uncovered in Ibrahimpatnam earlier this month, “proving that the racket operated over the past three months under the current regime.”

Reddy alleged that the government was spreading a false narrative blaming the previous YSRCP administration.

He questioned why YSRCP leader Jogi Ramesh’s name was allegedly missing in the remand report if he had been named by Janardhan Rao, an accused in the latest liquor scam case.

He also raised questions about a second video allegedly surfacing after the accused was remanded, and why TDP leaders involved were being “shielded from investigation.”

The opposition leader claimed that key accused TDP leaders Jayachandra Reddy and Surendra Naidu were suspended only after their roles became evident, and that Jayachandra Reddy’s driver “confessed” to transporting fake liquor in his employer’s vehicle.

He further accused the TDP of deleting a social media post that initially identified Jayachandra Reddy as the main accused, alleging it was part of a “wider cover-up to protect ruling party members.”