New Delhi:

Nara Chandrababu Naidu’s son launched an impassioned defence of the former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister on Friday, telling NDTV “I should call for a civil war against the corrupt regime (of the ruling YSR Congress)”. Mr Naidu’s son, Nara Lokesh, insisted his father – a “politician without corruption allegations” – had been sent to remand “without any proof”.

Mr Naidu was arrested over an alleged Rs 371 crore scam involving the state’s skill development corporation and sent to the Rajahmundry Jail for two weeks under judicial custody. The Telugu Desam Party boss’ arrest has roiled Andhra Pradesh politics ahead of Assembly and Lok Sabha elections due next year.

“Absolute power corrupts absolutely… and corrupt people put honest people behind bars. That is exactly what is happening in Andhra Pradesh,” Mr Lokesh told NDTV in Delhi this afternoon as he emphasised his father’s “stellar record” as Chief Minister and Leader of the Opposition.

READ | The Rs 371-Crore Scam That Led To Chandrababu Naidu’s Arrest: Explained

“If you read any of the remand reports it is very clear there is no money trail… because Mr Naidu has not done anything wrong. It is quite clear this is vendetta politics…” he lashed out at Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy.

In the national capital to gather support for his father, Mr Lokesh said he intends to fight accusations through every available legal option. “Justice is being delayed but justice cannot be denied.”

READ | Chandrababu Naidu To Stay In Jail, Court Rejects Wife’s “Safety” Request

“Mr Naidu has a stellar record… he has been CM for 15 years and LoP for another 15. He has an amazing track record… a politician without corruption allegations and such an honest person, without any proof is being sent to judicial remand…”

Mr Lokesh called on “all Indians to rally behind Mr Naidu”.

The Jana Sena Alliance

On Thursday actor-politician Pawan Kalyan said his Jana Sena had allied with Mr Naidu’s TDP and hit out at the Chief Minister and his government. “This is not about our (his party’s) political future… but the future of Andhra Pradesh,” he said, flanked by Mr Lokesh and TDP MLA Nandamuri Balakrishna, who is Mr Naidu’s brother-in-law.

READ | Actor-Politician Pawan Kalyan’s Jana Sena Ties Up With Chandrababu Naidu

Mr Lokesh welcomed the alliance and pointed to the irony of the two leaders meeting in the administrative block of the Rajahmundry Jail, which was built by Mr Naidu when he was Chief Minister.

“It was unfortunate to see him there… that brought the two leaders together.”

“Pawanji was stopped from entering Andhra (he was taken into preventive custody on Sunday en route to meet Mr Naidu) and when I was doing padyatra they obstructed me. Now I think time has come to pretty much… I should call for a civil war…”

The terms of the Jana Sena-TDP alliance are unclear given the former is also a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance, and the BJP and TDP don’t exactly have the best of relations.

On INDIA Support

Meanwhile, Mr Lokesh also welcomed support from the 28-member INDIA alliance, many members of which have backed Chandrababu Naidu even though the TDP is not part of the bloc.

READ | As Election Nears, INDIA Seat-Sharing In This State May Be Issue: Sources

“Support of INDIA means a lot… Mr Naidu has an amazing credibility built over not one or two days but 42 years… and it pains me that a leader with this kind of credibility, on a false allegation, is today in judicial remand,” his son said.

Hyderabad:

Telugu Desam Party president and former Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu, who was produced in a Vijayawada Anti-Corruption Bureau court on Sunday morning after his arrest, told the court that he has been falsely implicated for political gains. Citing technicalities under statutory provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act and claiming there is no “well-founded accusation” against him, Mr Naidu requested that the court reject the remand report submitted by the prosecuting agency.

Any enquiry or investigation relating to offences linked to recommendations made or decision taken by a public servant in discharge of official duties or functions has to be done after a sanction from the person competent to remove him from his office, Mr Naidu’s lawyer argued, citing Section 17-A of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

“The petitioner was the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh when the alleged offence alleged to have been committed and the person who removes the Chief Minister from Office is his majesty i.e., the Governor of Andhra Pradesh and hence the prosecution has to obtain prior sanction of the Governor even to initiate an enquiry/investigation in the above case. Hence, there is a statutory violation and hence the remand has to be rejected,” Supreme Court lawyer Siddarth Luthra, who is representing Mr Naidu along with a team of advocates, argued.

The alleged offences relate to a policy decision taken and approved by the state cabinet, making it a decision of the state government, which, therefore, can’t be questioned by initiating criminal proceedings, Mr Luthra further submitted.

The Rs 360 crore which is in contention was allocated to the Department of Skill Entrepreneurship and Innovation by the state government, and incorporated into the 2015-16 state budget, he said, adding that the same was voted by the Legislature and hence it can’t be questioned by initiating criminal proceedings.

No role has been attributed to the accused in the official complaint and the police’s remand report on siphoning the funds, Mr Luthra argued. The First Information Report, or FIR, registered on December 9, 2021, also has no allegation against Mr Naidu, he said.

“No criminal complaint can be made and maintained relating to acts done in discharge of official duties, and if there is any misuse of funds at any level, the same has to be dealt in a different manner but not by way of prosecuting a Hon’ble Chief Minister,” Siddarth Luthra’s petition to the court read.

The TDP chief was arrested in connection with an alleged Rs 300-crore Skill Development Corporation scam after a pre-dawn police operation at Gnanapuram in Nandyala on Saturday. He was arrested by the CID around 6 am from a marriage hall, outside which his caravan was parked.

Mr Naidu has been named the ‘principal conspirator’ in the case.