More than ten years after it first surfaced, the adulterated liquor case involving senior YSR Congress Party leaders Kakani Govardhan Reddy and Ramireddy Pratap Kumar Reddy remains stuck in limbo. The prolonged delay has once again raised serious concerns about accountability in criminal cases involving public representatives.
The case dates back to the 2014 elections, when voters in parts of Nellore district were allegedly supplied with spurious liquor. Several people fell critically ill after consuming it, and some deaths were also reported. Excise officials later seized large quantities of hazardous liquor and registered multiple cases against those involved.
In Sullurpeta, four cases were booked against Kakani Govardhan Reddy and others. In Kavali, six cases were filed against Ramireddy Pratap Kumar Reddy and his associates. The CID filed charge sheets in all ten cases in 2017, and the matters were later transferred to a special court in Vijayawada meant to fast-track cases against public representatives.
However, the trial hit a roadblock when the special court found that key documents were missing. In 2018, the cases were sent back to the Nellore court with directions to trace and attach the missing records. Since then, progress has been painfully slow. Allegations soon followed that crucial files were deliberately made to disappear to weaken the prosecution.
Investigators had earlier concluded that the liquor was sourced through networks linked to suppliers from Goa, Karnataka, and Puducherry, and distributed during the election period. One key accused in the syndicate, Gopalakrishna Swamy alias Appu, later died in jail while under remand.
Both leaders had secured bail earlier, but the case continues to test the credibility of the justice system. The delay stands in contrast to strict guidelines issued by the Supreme Court of India, which in November 2023 ordered fast-track trials and close monitoring of criminal cases involving MPs and MLAs.
With a new coalition government in place since 2024, CID officials have reportedly begun efforts to trace the missing documents and reopen the case in the special court. Whether this will finally break the decade-long stalemate remains the key question.
For now, the missing files have become a symbol of delayed justice, and a reminder that powerful names can keep serious cases waiting far longer than they should.
