Cash-for-vote case: ACB completes TDP MLA's questioning

The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) of Telangana interrogated Telugu Desam Party (TDP) legislator Sandra Venkata Veeraiah for a second day on Friday in the cash-for-vote case.

After questioning the lawmaker at the ACB headquarters in Banjara Hills, the agency presented him in the court and later shifted him back to Cherlapally Jail.

The ACB officials quizzed him for two days to gather more information about his role and the involvement of others in the scam.

The investigating agency believes Veeraiah played key role in bribing the nominated MLA. It had already informed the court that the TDP leader spoke to one of the accused in the case 32 times over mobile.

A city court on Wednesday had sent Veeraiah to ACB custody for two days. His bail petition is scheduled to come up for hearing on Monday.

The ACB had arrested the lawmaker on Monday after questioning him for seven hours. He was included as the fifth accused in the case. He was later sent to judicial custody for 14 days.

Veeraiah, who represents the Sattupalli assembly constituency in Khammam district of Telangana, is the second TDP legislator to be arrested in the case.

TDP legislator Revanth Reddy and two others were arrested by the ACB on May 31 while they were offering Rs.50 lakh as a bribe to nominated member Elvis Stephenson reportedly to induce him to vote for TDP-BJP candidate.

All the three were granted bail by the Hyderabad High Court last week.