Roads and Buildings Minister Dharmana Prasada Rao and Kadapa MP Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy were among the nine individuals in the Rs. 17,000 crore VANPIC project scam who appeared in a court here on Tuesday.
Senior IAS officers, M. Samuel and Manmohan Singh, former minister Mopidevi Venkataramana Rao, bureaucrat K.V. Brahmananda Reddy and VANPIC developer Nimmagadda Prasad, his brother Prakash and Jagan’s financial advisor V. Vijaya Sai Reddy were present in the court.
Mr. Jagan, Mr. Venkataramana Rao, Mr. Prasad and Mr. Brahmananda Reddy were shifted from Chanchalguda jail amidst tight security.
A court for CBI cases had issued summons to the accused to mark their first appearance in the wake of the recent acceptance of the chargesheet filed in the case by the CBI. The court secured their presence for future proceedings by directing them to furnish bonds for Rs. 25,000 with two sureties each.
Mr. Jagan’s mother, Vijayamma, wife Bharathi and other relatives were present in the packed court hall. Mr. Jagan and Mr. Dharmana Prasada Rao greeted each other as the former walked past the latter. The judge later permitted Mr. Jagan to meet his kin exclusively in the adjoining room. Supporters of Mr. Jagan jostled with him in the court corridor in an attempt to shake hands with him.
The court proceedings were marked by protests by advocates against strict security arrangements in the premises. The accused in three other chargesheets filed by CBI in the assets cases against Jagan were also present in the court.
