Bellary: CBI raids Reddy brothers' aides; Cash, booty found?

Bellary, Sep 11: Continuing its attack on the mining barons, the investigative agency Cnetral Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Sunday, Sep 11 raided the premises of two close aides of Reddy Brothers who are currently being lodged in Chanchalguda prison in Hyderabad.

A 11-member team led by Superintendent of Police (SP), Venkatesh from Hyderabad raided residences of Gurulinge Gowda and Rajashekara Gowda - the two close aides of the Reddy Brothers.

Gurulinge and Rajashekara are Chairman of the Bellary Urban Development Authority (BUDA) located at Renukacharya Nagara and a Gram Panchayat member and confidant of Reddy respectively.

Meanwhile, the CBI, who is investigating the various malpractices involving the powerful Reddy Brothers on the illegal mining in the state, were in for a surprise on the pompous wealth holed up in the homes of the Reddy Brothers.

The CBI was quoted as saying, "All these are just samples", indicating the massive riches yet to emerge from the abode of the mining king, Gali Janardhana Reddy. The CBI had to employ men to take stock of the wealth and keep them in safe custody that will be later transported to CBI offices in Hyderabad.

It is common knowledge among sources close to the Reddy Brothers that they have a penchant for acquiring land. Next in the list undoubtedly has to be gold. A CBI official commented, "I am sure the lockers of Reddy family in all the banks (they have lockers in six nationalised banks) would yield large a number of gold bricks."

Some of the stunning items seized from the Reddy's palatial bungalow include a one-foot tall idol of Lord Venkateswara, six-inch tall idol of Padmavati, a 100ft x 50ft puja room that was strewn with solid gold idols of various deities. The bell in the room weighed a kilo of pure gold.

That's not all, CBI sources also confirmed that they seized 45 necklaces, 610 gold bangles of which 35 are diamond encrusted, close to 300 earrings of which 75 are diamond studded and about 1,200 gold rings of which 100 of them contain diamonds. The agency also found other gold and platinum trinkets used in special occassions.

This expose comes after raids on Janardhana's home in Bangalore and two other locations, with the CBI yet to assess the assets at his homes in Chennai and his ancestral home in Pottur.

OneIndia News