Police arrest Karnataka former BJP minister Reddy, his close aide in bribery case

The Central Crime Branch unit of Bengaluru police on November 11 arrested G Janardhana Reddy, Karnataka former BJP minister and mining baron and his close aide Ali Khan on charges of money laundering and bribery. The former minister was questioned for hours at the crime branch office on November 10 in the alleged Ambident Group bribery case.

Alok Kumar Additional CP, Central Crime Branch, reportedly said, “We have taken the decision to arrest him on the basis of credible evidence and witnesses statements. We will produce him before the magistrate. We are going to recover the money and give it to the investors.”

According to reports Reddy will be taken for a medical test and later will be produced before a magistrate. He will be held at the Parappana Agrahara Central Prison in Bengaluru till his bail hearing at the session court on 12 November.

 “We have faith in the judiciary. We have made no mistake. We have cooperated with the investigating officer to the fullest extent for the past 24 hours. Despite our cooperation, the investigating officer is of the opinion that there are some links that need to be established from the time of investigation and that is why they found it necessary to arrest him,” Reddy’s lawyer added.

Mining baron is alleged to have received an amount of Rs 18 crore – in the form of gold – to allegedly help Ambident Pvt Ltd, a city-based company, dodge a money laundering case against it being pursued by the Enforcement Directorate.