The unusual silence of the Telugu Desam Party-led coalition government over the allegations of a massive land grabbing in Visakhapatnam against former chief secretary K Jawahar Reddy during the previous YSRCP government, has become a talking point in the political circles in the port city.
There allegations that Jawahar Reddy, while serving as the state’s top bureaucrat, was involved in questionable land transactions worth thousands of crores in Visakhapatnam through alleged benami networks.
According to reports, Jawahar Reddy had allegedly benami dealings in the Anandapuram and Padmanabham mandals, with individuals named Umesh and Trilok allegedly acting as intermediaries.
The total land involved is claimed to be between 800 and 1,000 acres, including assignment lands.
Jana Sena corporator Murthy Yadav had earlier publicly accused the former chief secretary and claimed to possess evidence.
At the time, Jawahar Reddy had reportedly threatened legal action but no significant follow-up occurred, leading to speculation that the matter was quietly dropped.
After the NDA-led coalition government came to power in Andhra Pradesh, TDP leaders had promised a SIT probe and strict action against those involved in land irregularities.
However, even after nearly 18 months in office, the coalition government has not initiated any inquiry or action against Jawahar Reddy.
Surprisingly, chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu and deputy chief minister Pawan Kalyan have also remained silent on the issue, making people wonder whether there were any political settlement or behind-the-scenes compromises.
The lack of investigation despite serious accusations has fuelled speculation within political and bureaucratic circles about larger undisclosed interests.