Andhra High Court to Hear Plea for CBI Probe Into Corruption Cases Against CM Naidu

Court Hearing

A Division Bench of the High Court headed by Chief Justice Lisa Gill has posted a Public Interest Litigation to November 10 for hearing. The petition seeks to transfer corruption cases involving Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu to the Central Bureau of Investigation.

The Petition's Claims

Petitioner K.B.G. Tilak filed the PIL, numbered as W.P. No. 140 of 2024, after a change in government, fearing that the new political setup could affect investigations and cause the cases to close. The legal matters involve assigned land transfers for SC and ST community members, optical-fibre network tender irregularities, skill development centres, land acquisition for the Amaravati Inner Ring Road, and excise and free sand policies.

Legal Arguments

Senior Counsel Ranjith Kumar told the court that the original complainants are government officials. Because Mr. Naidu holds power, these officials have not challenged the closure reports, making an independent inquiry necessary. He argued that the High Court, acting as a Constitutional Court, has the power to order an inquiry or send an investigation to the CBI to ensure fairness. The petitioner maintains that closed reports do not stop the court from checking if an independent probe is needed.

Context

Public Interest Litigations allow citizens or groups to approach courts on matters affecting the general public interest rather than a personal dispute. Courts occasionally examine requests to transfer sensitive investigations to independent central agencies when petitioners raise concerns about potential bias or the fairness of state-level probes.