Several teams of the Enforcement Directorate Friday conducted raids at the properties of Telangana minister Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy.
A total of 16 teams comprising ED officials conducted raids simultaneously at several locations in Hyderabad and Khammam, including his residences, offices in Banjara Hills and Jubilee Hills as well as in some properties belonging to his relatives.
The raids are said to be over money laundering linked with the customs duty evasion case against the minister’s son Harsha who allegedly purchased two luxury watches worth Rs 1.7 crore. The watches, a Patek Philipe 5740 and a Breguet 2759, were seized from Mohammed Mubeen who was apparently acting as a courier, when he was returning from Singapore. The raids began early morning and CISF provided security to the ED teams.
An MLA from Palair in Khammam, Ponguleti Srinivasa Reddy holds several portfolios including revenue, housing, information and public relations. He was initially with the YSRCP and represented Khammam as MP but then switched to BRS. After failing to secure a ticket from BRS in 2019 he turned a rebel and finally joined the Congress last year.
Even last year, ahead of Assembly elections in the state, ED and IT officials raided his residences in Hyderabad and Khammam as well as the office of his infrastructure firm.