Former TTD Board Member Sekhar Reddy Arrested

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Wednesday arrested businessman J Shekhar Reddy and two others here for money laundering, an official said.

The Income Tax department recently seized 177 kg of gold and cash totalling Rs 96 crore in old 500 and 1,000 rupee notes and Rs 34 crore in new currency from businessmen Reddy, Srinivasalu and Prem. Reddy, a contractor, had reportedly executed a lot of work for the Tamil Nadu government. The CBI has also arrested Srinivasalu and Prem.

The Income Tax department raided the premises of businessman Sekhar Reddy and his brother/associate Srinivasa Reddy and initially seized Rs 90 crore cash and 100 kg gold, said officials. Later, huge amounts were also recovered from his car.

Sekhar Reddy was a Board member of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams (TTD). He was appointed to the Board after N Chandrababu Naidu became chief minister of Andhra Pradesh. Sekhar Reddy runs sand mining business and is said to have lucrative contracts from the Tamil Nadu government. After the raids, the AP Government has removed him from the TTD Board.