SC to hear Revanth’s plea against HC order in Feb

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday deferred till February the hearing of Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy's petition challenging the high court order dismissing his plea questioning the jurisdiction of an ACB court in conducting the trial in the 2015 cash-for-vote scam case in which he is an accused. A bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta adjourned the hearing on a batch of pleas, including a petition filed by Reddy, after it was informed about bereavement in the family of one of the lawyers dealing with the case.

Reddy has challenged the June 1, 2021 order of the high court by which his plea questioning the jurisdiction of the Special Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) court to conduct the trial in the case was dismissed. On May 31, 2015, Revanth Reddy, then with the Telugu Desam Party, was apprehended by the ACB while allegedly paying a Rs 50-lakh bribe to Elvis Stephenson, a nominated MLA, for supporting TDP nominee Vem Narendar Reddy in the legislative council elections.

Apart from Reddy, the ACB had arrested some others. All of them were later granted bail. In July 2015, the ACB had filed a charge sheet against Reddy and others under the Prevention of Corruption Act and Section 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code. The ACB had then claimed it has collected clinching evidence against the accused in the form of audio/video recordings, and recovered an advance amount of Rs 50 lakh.