Bribery scandal: BJP activists offer Rs 50 Cr to TRS MLAs to change loyalties; booked

Hyderabad: Police have detained three BJP members for allegedly bribing and luring some TRS party workers to join the saffron party in Telangana.

The three accused have been identified as Ramachandra Bharathi alias Satish Sharma from Delhi, Nanda Kumar from Hyderabad, and Simhayaji Swamy from Tirupathi.

A case has been registered against them at Moinabad Police Station under section 154 and 157 of the Criminal Procedure Code (Cr. PC).

Police registered the case after TRS MLA from Tandur Constituency Pilot Rohit Reddy filed the formal complaint. The accused were detained on Wednesday during a police raid at Rohit Reddy's farmhouse in Aziz Nagar near Moinabad.

Details of the case

On September 26, Ramachandra Bharathi and Nanda Kumar, residents of Hyderabad, met the complainant and asked him not to contest as a candidate from the TRS party. They urged him to resign from TRS and contest the next election from BJP. They offered Rs.100 crore and central government civil contract works. Besides, they also offered high central government positions for monetary benefits after joining BJP.

They also warned that if he will not join the BJP, there will be criminal cases and raids by ED, and CBI. They said they will also bring down the TRS-led Telangana government.

Since the inducement of a bribe by a political party to the complainant is unethical, undemocratic, and encourages corruption and polluting politics, he decided not to entertain such practice.

On Wednesday, they again contacted him and informed that they are coming to his farmhouse located at Aziz Nagar, Moinabad for negotiation. They also informed him to mobilize some other TRS MLAs and offered Rs.50 crore each to join BJP. They asked other MLAs not to discharge their public duties honestly so that the Telangana government is destabilized.

The complainant informed that Ramachandra Bharati of Delhi, Nanda Kumar, and Simbayaji Swamy would come to his farmhouse to finalize the deal.

Therefore, he requested to take necessary legal action against the persons and those behind this conspiracy.