Rasheed offered me Rs 35 lakh, claims TRS MLA

Hyderabad, May 11 (UNI) Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) MLA S Bapu Rao who was remanded in judicial custody in connection with the fake passport case today reportedly confessed that Rasheed, the alleged kingpin in the scam, had offered Rs 35 lakh to him for providing fake passports in the names of his family members.

According to police sources here, Mr Rao had 'confessed' before the Central Crime Station (CCS) Police probing the case that he met Rasheed along with TRS MLA S Ramalinga Reddy in MLA quarters in the city and discussed the financial details for providing the passports in the name of his wife and three children to him.

Earlier, III Metropolitan Magistrate remanded the TRS MLA in judicial custody till May 25 when he was produced before the court by the CCS Police. He was later lodged in the Chenchalguda Jail.

The sources said, TRS MLA K Lingaiah, who also surrendered before the police on April 27 and remanded in judicial custody in connection with the scam, had introduced Mr Bapu Rao to Rasheed. But, Mr Ramalinga Reddy had not accepted the Rs 35 lakh offered to him by Rasheed.

Meanwhile, the CCS police took into their custody Rasheed and Former Telugu Desam Party Corporator Mujafar Ali, for further interrogation from the Chenchalguda Jail.

The XII Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate granted eight days police custody of Rasheed and two days police custody of the former TDP city coporator yesterday.

Mr Bapu Rao, the tribal MLA from reserved Boath Constituency in Adilabad district, had gone underground soon after the city police registered the case on May three against him on charges of securing passports for others in the name of his wife and three children.

UNI