The Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the Andhra Pradesh police, which has been probing the ₹3,200 crore liquor scam that allegedly happened during the previous YSR Congress party regime, arrested senior party leader and parliamentarian Peddireddy Midhun Reddy on Saturday, officials familiar with the matter said.
Midhun Reddy represents Andhra Pradesh's Rajampet constituency in Lok Sabha.(Instagram/peddireddy_midhunreddyofficial)
After grilling the MP for nearly seven hours at the Crime Investigation Department (CID) office at Mangalagiri, the SIT authorities informed his family members about his formal arrest. “Reddy will be produced before the local court in Vijayawada on Sunday,” an official privy to the development said.
Midhun Reddy, named as accused number 4 (A-4) in the liquor scam case, was summoned by the SIT for questioning on Saturday, after the Supreme Court on Friday rejected his petition seeking anticipatory bail in the case.
“The SIT authorities questioned him extensively about the flow of commissions received from liquor manufacturers into various alleged shell companies and from there to ultimate beneficiaries. The SIT produced all the evidence they gathered during the investigation before the MP to seek his explanation,” the official quoted above said.
Even as the interrogation of Reddy was going on, the SIT authorities filed a preliminary chargesheet in the liquor scam before the Vijayawada court. “The 300-page chargesheet was supplemented by more than 100 forensic lab reports and several electronic devices,” the official said.
He said the SIT informed the court that it had seized assets worth ₹62 crore so far, examined 268 witnesses and recorded the statements of 11 individuals. The chargesheet also enclosed remand reports of the arrested accused so far, besides other relevant documents.
“Although Mithun Reddy’s name appears in the chargesheet, the officials have not clearly explained his specific role. The SIT told the court that it would file another detailed chargesheet within 20 days, noting that the investigation is in a crucial phase and that more information would come to light soon,” he said.
So far, the SIT arrested 12 individuals, including Midhun Reddy, in connection with the liquor scam. Prominent among them are: former IT advisor to the previous YSRCP government Kasireddy Rajasekhar Reddy, who was named A-1, was arrested on April 21, 2025; Sajjala Sridhar Reddy (A-6) – Managing Director of SPY Agro Industries was arrested on April 26, 2025, B Chanakya (A-8), P. Dilip (personal assistant to Rajasekhar Reddy), and Govindappa Balaji (Director, Bharathi Cements) – all arrested in Mysuru on May 13, 2025
A bench of justices JB Pardiwala and R Mahadevan on Friday refused to grant protection from arrest to Reddy, who alleged that the attempt to arrest him in the case is clearly a “political ploy” as he had nothing to do with the liquor procurement policy of APSBCL during the YSRCP government in the state from 2019 to 2024. Reddy had approached the top court against the dismissal of his anticipatory bail plea by the Andhra Pradesh high court on July 15.
Earlier, on July 15, the SIT had issued a lookout circular (LOC) against Reddy to pre-empt him from fleeing abroad. It also formed special teams to trace his whereabouts and conduct searches in locations where he is likely to be hiding, the official cited above said.
The ₹3,200 crore liquor case involved alleged manipulation of excise policy to benefit certain liquor companies on payment of kickbacks.
The state took up the investigation into the matter based on a complaint by one Y Venkateswar Rao Srinivas, alleging irregularities in the functioning of the APSBCL between October 2019 and March 2024. Srinivas alleged that purchase orders for new and spurious liquor brands were made and some of these brands were produced by private distilleries in which YSRCP leaders were partners. He further alleged that kickbacks were paid for not buying stock from popular liquor brands.
The excise department and APSBCL had formed a five-member committee to investigate the complaint that found clear suppression of the established popular brands and preferential allocation to certain new brands in violation of the existing norms.
Meanwhile, YSRCP on Saturday slammed chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu for his vindictive attitude in foisting false cases against people close to Jagan Mohan Reddy and said the party would fight out these false cases.
YSRCP spokesman and former MLA Malladi Vishnu said the case against MP Midhun Reddy is part of a larger vindictive conspiracy to arrest people who are in close proximity to the party leadership. “But we will bounce back to call the bluff of Naidu,” he said.
“The more vindictive the actions of the Chandrababu Naidu government, the stronger our resolve becomes to fight back and expose the failures and corruption of the coalition. In what way Midhun Reddy is connected with the liquor scam is neither known nor revealed, and the SIT could not answer the court when asked about the details,” Vishnu said
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