The Supreme Court on Friday asked the Hyderabad High Court to take a decision on the petition filed by Andhra chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu, which challenged the ACB probe into his alleged role in the cash-for-vote case, within four weeks.
Last month, an ACB special court in Hyderabad ordered a re-investigation into the infamous cash-for-votes case, after a complaint by YSRCP MLA Alla Ramakrishna Reddy, who alleged that the Telangana government had failed to bring the case to a conclusion.
The court had then directed the ACB director-general to conduct a probe and submit a report.
The Times of India goes on to add:
However, following a petition by the AP CM urging the court to quash the case against him, Justice Raja Elango of Hyderabad HC stayed the ACB probe order on September 2.Aggrieved by this, the YSRCP MLA challenged the same in the apex court, which heard the matter on Friday.
Speaking to TOI, the YSRC MLA's counsel P Sudhakar Reddy said that the apex court bench gave them the liberty of approaching the top court directly if the HC fails to decide the case within four weeks.
Meanwhile, in a separate development in the case, the Hyderabad High Court stayed the bailable warrant issued against nominated Anglo-India MLA Elvis Stephenson, who is complainant in the case.
Telangana TDP legislator A. Revanth Reddy was arrested by the ACB on May 31 when he was offering Rs 50 lakh to nominated MLA Stephenson to make him vote for the TDP-BJP candidate in the elections to Telangana's legislative council.
ACB, which had laid a trap on a complaint by Stephenson, also arrested Revanth Reddy's aides.
The ACB had earlier said that there were 102 telephone conversation records in another accused TDP leader Bishop Harry Sebastian's phone related to the cash-for-vote case.
However, the most important phone call was one alleged to be between Elvis Stephenson and Chandrababu Naidu.
The audio tape was first played by T News, a Telugu news channel owned by ruling TRS and was later picked up by others.
During the conversation, Naidu purportedly assured the nominated member that he is with him. "Our people briefed me. I am with you don't bother. For everything I am with you. What all they spoke we will honour(sic)" Naidu was heard as telling the legislator.