Hyderabad HC quashes FIR against an accused in cash-for-vote scandal

The Hyderabad High Court on Friday quashed an FIR filed against Jerusalem Mathaiah, an accused in the cash-for-vote scandal involving TDP MLA in Telangana A Revanth Reddy.

Mathaiah, whose name figures as the fourth accused in the case registered on May 31, 2015, by Telangana's Anti-Corruption Bureau, had moved the court seeking quashing of the FIR.

On May 31 last year, TDP's deputy floor leader in Telangana Assembly Revanth Reddy and two others Bishop Sebastian Harry and Uday Simha were arrested by ACB while allegedly paying a bribe of Rs 50 lakh to Elvis Stephenson, a nominated MLA, for supporting TDP nominee Vem Narendar Reddy in Legislative Council elections on June 1.

TDP MLA Sandra Venkata Veeraiah was also arrested later.

All of them were subsequently granted bail. Mathaiah had secured a High Court order staying his arrest.

He had sought quashing of the FIR on the ground that at no point he had had any conversation with Stephenson and the link was not established between him and Revanth Reddy.

Justice B Siva Sankara Rao allowed his application and quashed the FIR against him.