SC dismisses Jagan's plea against assets probe

In a setback to YSR Congress President Jaganmohan Reddy, the Supreme Court on Friday refused to stay an Andhra Pradesh high court order for a preliminary Central Bureau of Investigation enquiry to ascertain if he owns assets disproportionate to his income.

A bench of justices Dalveer Bhandari and Deepak Verma dismissed Reddy's plea refusing to interfere with the high court's order. The bench said "at this stage" no interference is required into the high court order, as it is only a preliminary enquiry and the high court can refuse to proceed against him if nothing substantial comes out against him in the probe. The bench, however, asked the high court to give a copy of the CBI probe report to Jagan if it decides to proceed against him on the basis of the agency's findings.

The bench turned down the plea of senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, who appearing for Jagan, tried to convince the court that there is nothing against the politician and there is a political rivalry behind this.

Jagan, son of late chief minister Y S Rajasekar Reddy, had approached the apex court challenging an Andhra Pradesh high court order for a preliminary probe by the CBI to ascertain if he owned assets far exceeding his legal income. Jagan's petition had sought quashing of the July 12 order, which directed the CBI to submit its report in two weeks, arguing that it was "illegal", "erroneous" and "unsustainable" and deserves to be quashed.

He had contended that the high court did not have the jurisdiction to order a CBI probe on a "politically motivated" petition. The high court had passed the order on a petition by Andhra Pradesh Textiles Minister P Shankar Rao accusing Jagan of amassing huge wealth using his late father's position as the state chief minister.

The high court had said it will decide on the issue of a full-fledged inquiry on the basis of the CBI report after a preliminary probe by the agency. Jagan, after being denied the chief minister's post following his father's death in a chopper crash, floated the YSR Congress party on whose symbol he and his mother won the Kadapa Lok Sabha and Pulivendla assembly seats respectively in recent by-polls.