CBI against releasing Gali Janardhan Reddy on bail

HYDERABAD: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which is investigating into the illegal mining case, told the AP high court that it was following a trail of huge monies across the globe and that releasing mining baron Gali Janardhan Reddy on bail at this stage would jeopardize their effort.
According to the CBI, Gali has two Brahmani industries; Brahmani Industries Ltd and Brahmani Industries Karnataka Ltd.He sold away Karnataka Brahmani to a Mumbai based steel company Uttam Galva Ltd in 2011. Hundreds of crores of rupees reached Gali's Karnataka Brahmani through certain suitcase companies based in Mumbai and Kolkata, the CBI said. The same suitcase companies sent money to Gali's personal assistant PA Mehfuz Ali Khan, who allegedly bought land near Bangalore airport with that money. Though huge amounts of money changed hands while Karnataka Brahmani was being sold, the CBI was unable to trace the money so far.
The CBI also said that records show that Gali's Obulapuram Mining Corporation (OMC) made transactions worth Rs 7,000 crore between 2007 and 2010 but accounts worth Rs 5,000 crore were not available. The CBI added that they came across pieces of evidence that show that Gali Janardhan Reddy has iron ore mines in Australia and Indonesia and Swiss bank accounts.
A firm named GJR company in Dubai has sent hundreds of crores of rupees to Brahmani. The online transfer of money from Gali's companies to abroad was made after the authorisation given by Gali's wife Lakshmi Aruna to banks, the CBI said. The mines in OMC were used as conduit to make mining in Karnataka official, the CBI counsel added. If he was set free now, he would threaten the witnesses and derail the whole progress made so far, the CBI said.
However, Gali Janardhan Reddy's counsel argued that the CBI's efforts to deny bail to his client even after two years of arrest were not fair. Since chargesheets were filed and documents were seized, the chances of his client tampering with the evidence were bleak, he said.
Justice K G Shankar, who heard both sides, reserved his orders.