SC refuses to consider plea for FIR against Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu in cash-for-vote 'scam'

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday declined to consider a plea against December 9, 2016 decision by the Andhra Pradesh High Court quashing a complaint and direction to register FIR against Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu in 2015 cash-for-vote 'scam'.

A bench of Justices M M Sundresh and Aravind Kumar also refused to entertain a writ petition by YSR Congress Party's former MLA Alla Ramakrishna Reddy seeking a direction for transfer of the probe to the CBI.

The plea was dismissed as withdrawn after hearing of the arguments.

After hearing the counsel for the parties, including senior advocate Sidharth Luthra, advocate Prerna Singh and advocate Guntur Prabhakar for Naidu, the bench rejected both the pleas, related to the direction by the Special Court.

It was alleged that MLC Elvis Stephenson-nominated MLA was offered Rs 50 lakh cash for casting his vote in favour of Telugu Desam Party in the MLC elections.

YSR Congress Party MLA Reddy had filed the complaint before Special Judge and sought to include TDP chief Naidu as an accused in the case.

The sensational case was known as the cash-for-vote 'scam' in 2015.

Reddy had approached the ACB court in Hyderabad complaining that though the first report of the ACB in the cash-for-vote 'scam' had referred to the name of Naidu 22 times, the investigation agency did not name him as an accused.

The principal special judge of the ACB court in Hyderabad, on August 29, 2016 directed the ACB, Telangana, to investigate the case and file its report.

The high court, however, quashed the complaint and ACB court orders, in a big relief to Naidu.

It had said that Reddy had no locus standi to seek a probe against Naidu in the said case as he was not an aggrieved party or not concerned with the case in any way.