CBI grills Vijay Sai yet again in Jagan case

HYDERABAD: Vijay Sai Reddy, vice-president of Jagati Publications Limited and financial auditor of Kadapa MP Y S Jaganmohan Reddy, appeared before officials of the Central Bureau of Investigation here on Saturday and was grilled on investments made by various people into the company. In the recent past, Sai Reddy had accused the CBI  of harassing and threatening the witnesses during the investigation. He also filed a petition in the Special CBI Court alleging that the CBI violated the High Court’s directions to look into Jaganmohan Reddy’s illegal assets between 2004 and 2009. He alleged that the CBI crossed its limits by asking the witnesses and other investors about some business activities that took place in 1999 and 2000. After hearing the arguments, the court reserved its orders for December 13. On Saturday, CBI officials examined some witnesses in the Emaar and Jagan cases. They include representatives of Emaar and Sahoo, manager of Jubilee Media which is run by Lagadapati Sridhar, the youngest brother of Vijayawada MP Lagadapati Rajagopal. An executive engineer of the irrigation department testified on the water supply to Penna Cements at Tandur. The company is owned by  P Pratap Reddy who also heads Pioneer Infra.  Penna Cement Industries Limited was floated by Pratap Reddy, a Congress leader and close confidant of the late YS Rajasekhara Reddy.Pioneer Infrastructure Holdings Limited is also owned by Pratap Reddy. Pioneer Infra invested `20 crore in Jagathi Publications, while Penna Cements Group invested `45 crore in Jagathi Publications and `23 crore in Carmel Asia Holdings Viswanatham, an officer on special duty with the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority and also OSD in the municipal administration and urban development department, submitted documents pertaining to Jaganmohan Reddy’s Lotus Pond land and building. The mansion is owned by Jagan’s four companies which purchased six plots from private individuals who had got them from the then Hyderabad Urban Development Authority.The six plots together measure about 5,807 square yards which is more than an acre. The land was purchased for `24 crore and the cost of construction is estimated to be around `55 crore.