AP govt may be done with saving Raju

The Andhra Pradesh government may soon wash its hands of B Ramalinga Raju, the jailed founder of Satyam Computer Services soon, leaving him at the mercy of the central agencies.

Sources tracking the case said the state government has been facing criticism for providing protective custody to the Rajus and the political ramifications of this in the run-up to the general elections can be huge.

Besides, going by the sources, it has already got the time it needed to wipe out traces of political nexus in the case.

“If you look at the trajectory of the case so far, the CID of Andhra Pradesh has not worked on Satyam at all,” a source said. “It has always been about the land dealings by the Rajus… The police authorities have not worked on any account of Satyam, or tried to speak to the clients or such stakeholders to verify the accounts of Satyam.”

Sources said the primary worry for the political bosses was any political link the documents available with the Rajus might have, which could embarrass politicians before the elections.

“Our understanding is that the records have neither revealed anything about the political nexus or such traces have now been secured by the state police only to avoid any embarrassment. So, there is no reason for the state to show any specific interest in protecting the Rajus beyond a point,” a source said.

In fact, immediately after the arrest of the Raju brothers, the Raju community had united to vent their ire against the government.

Sources in the Congress said the chief minister had briefed the Congress high command about the implications of the arrests and the political fallout.

Rajus are a strong community in the state, though they are just 1.2% of the state population. This sect of Kshatriyas has grown wealthy only due to agriculture practices and the fertile land they own in the coastal region of the state.

While the community is concentrated in the East and West Godavari districts, some have migrated to places such as Hyderabad to pursue other businesses or for education of their children. The Raju community is politically influential and is the opinion maker in the two districts.

Incidentally, these are the two districts on which the newborn Praja Rajyam Party (PRP) of Chiranjeevi too has been focusing for the elections.

“The objective is to ensure that the Telugu Desam Party does not benefit from the entire episode. It does not matter even if the PRP wins some seats due to the Satyam fallout,” a source in the state Congress said.

However, news of the state offering protection to the Rajus from the central authorities in a way helped the government change the opinion of the community at large. “At this point, we don’t see any negative impact of Satyam arrests on the political front. Even if the vote goes against the Congress, it will only go in favour of Chiranjeevi, but not in favour of Naidu,” the source explained.

In fact, the CID has been using pressure tactics on the Rajus to make sure they don’t make any statement against the politicians, particularly the chief minister or his son.
For instance, there have been no arrests in the case for sometime now.

Though the names of people like Suryanarayana Raju, Ramalinga Raju’s brother, and his mother Appala Narasamma were mentioned in several documents by those questioned in the case, the CID did not move ahead. They still maintain that Suryanarayana Raju is absconding. This Raju had also filed for anticipatory bail in the court and the hearings are yet to begin.

Veterans in investigation say the names of his mother, brother and wife Nandini Raju are the pressure points on Raju to keep him in check.

A retired senior police official explained, “By picking up people like DVGK Raju, the general manager of SRSR Advisory Services, the investigators have clear indications about the arrests. Now, the thought of either his wife or his mother getting arrested would scare Raju and secure various other loose ends.”