Hyderabad: According to legal experts, it will not be easy for Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu to escape the clutches of the law in the cash-for-vote case as prima facie facts are against Mr Chandrababu Naidu and Mr Revanth Reddy.
Criminal lawyer C. Malleswara Rao said normally it is the responsibility of the prosecution to collect evidence and prove the alleged offence against the accused. But in this case all the circumstantial evidence is in favour of the ACB.
“It is established that Revanth Reddy went to the residence of Stephenson, who does not belong to his party, with a bag of cash. It is also established that Revanth would not be an individual beneficiary of the act in which he indulged. It is the TD party which would be the ultimate beneficiary,” he added.
He said, “It is also a crucial fact in favour of the prosecution and against the Telugu Desam, headed by Naidu, that knowing well that the party would fall short of votes, it had fielded its candidate and then tried to bribe the TRS MLA. There is enough evidence to prove malafides and conspiracy.”
High court lawyer Pappu Nageswara Rao said, “If Revanth turns approver there is possibility of exoneration from the offence and restoration of normalcy of his political carrier.
If he sticks to his statement of not guilty, it will not be easy from him to come out of the case. However. in both circumstances, the Telugu Desam president has to prove his innocence.”
Taped conversation between Chandrababu Naidu and MLA Elvis Stephenson
