Hyderabad: The Andhra Pradesh High Court Tuesday granted Telugu Desam Party (TDP) supremo and former state chief minister Chandrababu Naidu temporary bail for four weeks — till 28 November — on medical and humanitarian grounds. It’s expected that he will be released Tuesday evening.
Naidu, 73, has been in judicial custody at Rajahmundry central prison since 10 September, a day after his arrest by the Andhra Pradesh Crime Investigation Department in connection with the Rs 371-crore skill development project scam that allegedly took place when he was chief minister between 2014 and 2019.
The bail was given after Naidu sought the interim release “to facilitate the undertaking of necessary medical tests and treatment under the supervision of personal physicians.”
The court, after examining Naidu’s medical reports indicating that he requires cataract surgery on his right eye, permitted him to seek treatment at the same hospital where he had the surgery for his left eye in June, the LV Prasad Eye Institute in Hyderabad.
The regular bail plea in the case will be heard next on 10 November
TDP leaders and workers erupted in joy across the state when they heard the news, bursting crackers and sharing sweets in celebration of their supremo’s release.
“Jagan’s (CM Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy) downfall begins from the moment our leader Chandrababu steps out of the prison. No force can stop Naidu-TDP now,” Kinjarapu Atchannaidu, chief of the TDP’s state unit, reportedly said after the bail order, adding that the opposition leader “will be freed of all the illegal cases.”
D. Purandeswari, the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) state chief and Naidu’s sister-in-law, also reportedly welcomed the interim bail, saying she had condemned the manner of the arrest.
The bail order comes after Naidu — who also suffers from other ailments including hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, diabetes mellitus and a skin disorder — spent 52 days in judicial custody. From the beginning, his family has expressed concern over his well-being, alleging inadequate healthcare, safety and security in the prison.
Nara Lokesh, Naidu’s son and TDP general secretary, had even alleged that the Jagan-led government was trying to administer steroids to his father in jail.
Alleging that the opposition leader’s life was at risk, Lokesh, in a post on X earlier this month, said, “CM Jagan will be responsible if any harm befalls Naidu.”
“There is an undeniable and immediate threat to CBN’s (Chandrababu Naidu’s) life. He is being deliberately harmed. His safety is unquestionably at risk. CBN is facing a dire situation, dealing with mosquitoes, contaminated water, weight loss, infections, and allergies, all without access to timely medical assistance,” Lokesh said in the post.
Prison authorities and leaders of the ruling YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) have denied the allegations.
Meanwhile, Naidu’s wife Nara Bhuvaneswari had embarked on a statewide tour, starting from her husband’s native Naravaripalle last week, in an effort to shore up sympathy for her jailed husband and invigorate party workers in the run-up to the Andhra Pradesh polls next year.
Named Nijam Gelavali (Truth should triumph), the tour involves speaking to the public about the “illegal arrest and Jagan Mohan Reddy’s vendetta politics”, and also includes visits to the families of people – TDP supporters, Naidu admirers – who allegedly died of shock/pain following his arrest.
TDP leaders claim there are at least 150 such cases or families across the state who will be consoled by Bhuvaneswari.
Cases against Naidu
The former CM is also an accused in the alleged AP FiberNet and Amaravati Inner Ring Road realignment scam cases, as well as a riot case at Angallu village in Annamayya district. He has been granted anticipatory bail in some , including the Angallu rioting case.
On Monday, the AP CID named him an accused in yet another case, alleging that when he was CM (2014-19), he and Kollu Ravindra, the then excise minister, had unduly favoured some distillers and liquor suppliers while granting liquor licences.
Naidu’s conditional bail in the skills project scam case is against him furnishing a bail bond for Rs 1 lakh with two sureties. He can get himself examined/treated at a hospital of his choice at his own expense, but should provide the details about the hospital and treatment procedures in a sealed cover to the Rajahmundry Jail superintendent, who in turn shall forward the cover intact to the trial court.
The former CM is directed not to induce, threaten, or promise to any person acquainted with the facts of the case to dissuade him from disclosing such facts to the court or any other authority. Naidu has to surrender himself before the jail superintendent on or before 5pm on 28 November.
(Edited by Rohan Manoj)
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