Mining baron Gali Janardhana Reddy's aide Mehfuz Ali Khan surrendered before a magistrate court in Bengaluru after a sessions court cancelled his bail on Tuesday. He was remanded to judicial custody till November 27.
Mehfuz has been accused of receiving Rs 18 crore in gold from the owners of Ambidant Marketing Pvt Ltd, a financial firm accused of cheating investors on behalf of Janardhana Reddy.
Investigators believe that questioning Mehfuz will provide details of the role played by Janardhana Reddy in helping Ambidant owner Syed Fareed Ahmed Khan in covering up an alleged ponzi scheme, as per a report by The New Indian Express.
Syed Fareed Ahmed is currently under the Central Crime Branch's (CCB) scanner for allegedly perpetuating a ponzi scheme in the pretence of 'Islamic Banking' and cheating investors to the tune of Rs 500 crore.
When CCB officials arrested Syed, he claimed that he had paid Janardhana Reddy Rs 20 crore including Rs 18 crore worth of gold in exchange for help in covering up the scam. Janardhana Reddy had allegedly helped Syed from being investigated by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) by bribing officials, as per The Hindu.
Mehfuz is said to have mediated the deal on behalf of Janardhana Reddy.
The mining baron, who was also a BJP minister in the past, was granted bail earlier this month as there was no evidence directly linking him to the cover-up of the scam. He was earlier arrested for money laundering and bribery in connection with the case.
The bail for Janardhana Reddy came as a relief to the controversial former minister. He was earlier released from jail in 2015 after nearly four years for his alleged role in the illegal mining scam in Ballari that led to the downfall of the first BJP government in Karnataka.