Poachgate: SIT investigation won’t be fair, counsel argues in Telangana HC

HYDERABAD: Stating that the TRS had admitted 23 MLAs from other parties into its fold in 2014 and 10 MLAs in 2018, senior counsel Udday Holla, representing B Srinivas, told the Telangana High Court on Wednesday that the pink party’s charge that the BJP was poaching its legislators does not hold much water. He said that if the TRS were to point one finger at others, it should point four at itself.

Holla was continuing his arguments in the batch of writ petitions filed by the accused and State BJP general secretary Premender Reddy demanding a CBI investigation into the TRS MLAs poaching case. Informing the court that the Governor has raised suspicion of her phone being tapped, Holla said that none other than the head of the SIT probing the poaching case was under the lens over this allegation.

“How can the State government claim a fair investigation when senior police officials are resorting to such tactics? Because the SIT inquiry lacks credibility, the investigation of this matter should be assigned to another agency, such as a private detective agency or the CBI, for a fair and unbiased probe,” senior counsel told the court.

Justice Reddy questioned Holla about the prejudice created to his client as a result of the entire poaching episode being aired by numerous TV channels.Dushyant Dave, senior counsel appearing for the State, had previously apologised unconditionally in court for the media trial.