HC notice to Jagan on ex-MP’s PIL in illegal assets case

Hyderabad: Telangana High Court on Wednesday issued a notice to Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y. S. Jagan Mohan Reddy on a petition filed by former MP Chegnodi Harirama Jogaiah seeking directions to expedite the hearing in the disproportionate assets (DA) case against him.

Chief Justice Alok Aradhe and Justice N. V. Shravan Kumar took up the hearing on the objections raised by the court registry over treating the petition as Public Interest Litigation (PIL). Taking note of the changes made by Jogaiah in his petition, the bench agreed to treat it as the PIL.

Agreeing with the arguments submitted by the petitioner’s counsel Polishetty Radhakrishna, the court directed the registry to assign a number to the petition.

The former MP had filed the petition in June seeking direction to expedite the hearing in the disproportionate assets case involving Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy. He sought directions to resolve the case before Andhra Pradesh Assembly elections scheduled in 2024.

The court, however, raised an objection to this and asked the petitioner to amend his petition.

The division bench ordered notices to Jagan Mohan Reddy, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the CBI court.

Last week, the Supreme Court had issued notices to the CBI and Jagan Mohan Reddy on a plea seeking transfer of the trial in the disproportionate assets case outside Hyderabad, preferably to Delhi.

The petition was filed by Raghu Ramakrishna Raju, a rebel MP of Jagan Mohan Reddy-led YSR Congress Party.

The MP alleged that the Chief Minister ensured that the criminal trials against him remain dormant and no fruitful steps are taken against him.