Hyderabad: Bharath Rashtra Samithi (BRS) Patancheru MLA Gudem Mahipal Reddy on Tuesday, July 2 appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in relation with the alleged mining scam.
Earlier on June 20, the central agency had raided the residences of the Patancheru MLA and his brother G Madhusudhan Reddy as well as conducted searches in eight other premises linked to the brothers as part of an alleged illegal mining-linked money laundering case.
The MLA is the proprietor of the Patancheru-based Santhosh Sand and Granite Supply, booked in a money laundering case. The firm was reportedly found to have excavated and transported an excess quantity of 11,98,743 cubic meters of building stone and road metal within the quarry lease permitted area and 10,11,672 cubic meters of material beyond the permitted area including 4.37 hectres of encroached government land.
According to ED officials, the accused illegally amassed around Rs. 300 crore by selling illegally excavated material and also evaded royalty amount of Rs. 39.08 crore due to the government
Unaccounted money of Rs.19 lakh along with large number of property documents supposedly in benamis were seized during the ED operation last month.
Extending solidarity to MLA Mahipal Reddy, senior BRS leader T Harish Rao had slammed the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) led Centre and the Congress-led Telangana government for “political vendetta” following the ED raids.
Madhusudan Reddy was arrested and remanded by the police in March for the alleged illegal mining by his companies.
