CBI grills Reddy brothers on second day

The CBI today continued interrogation of former Karnataka minister and mining baron G Janardhan Reddy and his brother-in-law BV Srinivas Reddy in the illegal mining case for the second day, officials said.

The CBI started questioning the accused duo from yesterday after it secured permission from the Special Court for CBI cases here for their custodial interrogation.

The court had yesterday dismissed the bail pleas of both Janardhan Reddy and Srinivas Reddy, who is the Managing Director of Obulapuram Mining Company (OMC), and ordered that they be handed over to the investigating agency immediately for their custodial investigation till September 19.

The Reddy duo were arrested on September 5 by a CBI team from Bellary in Karnataka after searches were conducted at their premises in connection with the alleged illegal mining activities.

The CBI had registered a case against OMC on December 7, 2009 at the request of Andhra Pradesh Government in the wake of allegations of illegal mining and irregularities in allotment of mining leases to the company in Obulapuram and Malpanagudi villages in Anantapur district of the state.

The CBI has been asked to produce the Reddys in court again on September 19.