Cash for vote: TDP MLA gets 14-day custody

Telugu Desam Party MLA Revanth Reddy, arrested for allegedly trying to bribe a nominated legislator to vote for his party in <g data-gr-id="12">election</g> to the Telangana Legislative Council, was on Monday sent to 14-day judicial custody.

The court, however, allowed Reddy to cast his vote in the election to the council from MLAs' quota before being taken to the prison, <g data-gr-id="11">Anti Corruption</g> Bureau (ACB) director general AK Khan said.

With the incident causing <g data-gr-id="13">embarrasment</g> to TDP led by Andhra Pradesh CM N Chandra Babu Naidu, the party dubbed it as "a false case aimed at defaming the party". On a complaint by nominated MLA Elvis Stephenson, Reddy and two others – B <g data-gr-id="14">Sebasitan</g> Harry and Uday Simha – were grilled by the ACB on Sunday night and produced before the magistrate on Monday, after which they were remanded to judicial custody. 

The ACB said Reddy and his aide allegedly offered Stephenson a bribe of Rs 50 lakh as advance, as part of a Rs 5-crore deal. They had gone to Stephenson's residence in Secunderabad to hand over the cash when ACB sleuths nabbed them.