Vijay Sai’s laptop hope in Chanchalguda jail may come true

HYDERABAD: The prisons department may not like it but the VIP prisoners at Chanchalguda jail could just have their way and make use of computers in the jail.
Vice-chairman of Jagati Publications V Vijay Sai Reddy, lodged in the jail as an undertrial in the alleged illegal assets case against Y S Jaganmohan Reddy, has sought the court’s permission to use his laptop in the prison.If Vijay Sai Reddy has petitioned the court with the request, he has reasons to be hopeful.
According to prisons department sources, Satyam’s ex-chairman B Ramalinga Raju had access to a computer when he was in Chanchalguda jail as an undertrial. Not only Raju, his brother Rama Raju and associate Vadlamani Srinivas also obtained permission from the court to use computers in jail. Until the trio got released on bail at the intervention of Supreme Court in November 2011, they were regularly using their laptops in the jail.
It is learnt that with the court having permitted Ramalinga Raju, Rama Raju and Vadlamani Srinivas to use computers, they had to pay for their computers and get them installed in the prison. The prisons department told the court that it would not be possible for it to provide computers to the inmates.
The Satyam trio had pleaded with the court saying that they needed to use computers to prepare for the case. It is learnt that, they were allowed to use computers during specific hours. However, this was done under the supervision of the jail officials.
With Vijay Sai Reddy also asking for a similar facility now, though the CBI court yet to take a decision on the issue, it could just become a trend for the VIP prisoners or even others lodged in the jail to ask for computers. And that is something prisons department officials are not bargaining for.