Explained: The Maguntas named by Kejriwal in court and their link to BJP ally TDP

Magunta Srinivasulu Reddy received a Lok Sabha ticket from the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) on Friday.

The development comes after he and his son Raghav Magunta Reddy, who is an accused-turned-approver in the Delhi excise policy case that led to Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal’s arrest, jumped ship from the YSR Congress Party to the TDP on 28 February.

Here’s all we know about them, their link to the Delhi excise policy scam case, and the BJP.

Who are the Maguntas?

Magunta Srinivasulu Reddy is a four-time Member of Parliament from the Ongole constituency of Andhra Pradesh. On Friday, he was nominated from the same constituency but on the TDP’s ticket, according to The Indian Express.

More from Explainers

How ChatGPT is becoming everyone’s BFF and why that’s dangerous This Week in Explainers: How recovering from Gen-Z protests is a Himalayan task for Nepal

He rejoined the TDP last month after serving for five years with the Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party, which he quit ahead of Andhra Pradesh’s split.

He joined the YSR Congress Party following his defeat in the 2014 general elections, and he eventually won from Ongole in 2019.

Last month, Raghav, Srinivasulu’s son, too switched from the YSR Congress Party to the TDP. N Chandrababu Naidu, the party’s leader, welcomed both of them.

The TDP sees a chance to gain ground in the constituency thanks to the Magunta family’s influence in Ongole.

In addition to its influence in politics, the family owns two more companies, including Balaji Distillerie. They have almost seven decades of experience in the liquor industry.

Impact Shorts

More Shorts

Ghaziabad woman dead, pilgrims attacked in bus… How Nepal’s Gen-Z protests turned into a living hell for Indian tourists

Were bodyguards involved in Charlie Kirk’s shooting? The many conspiracies surrounding the killing

What was their role in the alleged excise policy?

In a court hearing on Thursday in Delhi, Chief Minister Kejriwal mentioned the father-son duo. The CM claimed that after his son Raghav was detained in February 2023, Srinivasulu was forced to provide a statement against him, as per Times Now.

Srinivasulu’s name initially surfaced in the probe in September 2022, when the ED searched his Nellore, New Delhi, and Chennai offices, premises, and properties. But he was never named as an accused party in the case.

Srinivasulu allegedly admitted to looking for opportunities for his spirits business in Delhi and meeting with Kejriwal in March 2021 for the same, according to The Print, which cited the ED’s chargesheet.

Times Now reports that on 21 March 2021, Srinivasulu met with BRS MLC K Kavitha, who informed him that she had spoken with Kejriwal and asked Srinivasulu to arrange Rs 50 crore.

“Since I’m involved in daily MP activities, I asked my son Raghav Magunta to deal with Kavitha… later I came to know that my son had paid Rs 25 crore to her,” the remand application read.

In court on Thursday, Kejriwal contradicted Srinivasulu’s claim, saying that the MP had approached him asking for assistance in obtaining land for his family trust in Delhi.

“Magunta Sreenivasulu Reddy, who is an MP, came to my official residence on 16 March 2021 seeking land in Delhi for his family trust to which I informed him that the issue of land was L-G’s jurisdiction and that I would forward his application,” Kejriwal said, in contradiction to Srinivasulu’s statement recorded on 14 July 2023.

“Srinivasulu had not named me in his first three statements. Then after his son’s arrest, he named me and his son got bail and pardon in the case. His son gives seven statements and only the last one features my name. Only those two statements, which implicated me, get mentioned on record by ED. Why are not all of their statements on record?” the Delhi CM asked.

Meanwhile, Raghav was arrested by the ED in February last year.

In October 2023, he was granted bail after a Delhi court allowed him to turn approver in the corruption case linked to the alleged Delhi excise policy scam after he disclosed certain vital facts in his recorded statements, according to Times Now.

Speaking on the statement of Raghav, Kejriwal said in court that Raghav was left off after the latter mentioned his name in his statement. The CM said that Raghav was consistent with his statement for five months. Later, he mentioned my name and soon after, he was let off.

How are they linked to the BJP?

In Andhra Pradesh, Srinivasulu and Raghav Magunta are actively campaigning for TDP, a significant BJP ally, while the courtroom drama continues.

The Indian Express quoted TDP sources as claiming that Srinivasulu had originally intended to retire from politics to make room for his son Raghava, who he thought would be elected from the same Lok Sabha seat that had long been his stronghold.

As the excise case shadow still hangs over his son, the TDP was more inclined to give Srinivasulu a ticket.

Notably, according to the newspaper, the father-son team’s decision to leave the YSRCP was partly influenced by the excise case, as the party refused to support them following Raghav’s arrest.

YSRCP insiders told the newspaper that Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy was reluctant to field a candidate involved in a scandal that has garnered widespread attention.

Soon after joining the TDP, Raghav began campaigning in the first week of March, hoping to secure a ticket from the family stronghold. He conducted door-to-door campaigns in the Ongole Lok Sabha seat’s assembly constituencies of Darsi, Giddalur, Kanigiri, and Kondapi.

Indian Express sources claim Raghav was also supposed to cover the Yerragondapalem and Markapuram Assembly constituencies, but once Kejriwal was jailed, the TDP leadership told him that they thought Srinivasulu would do better in the race.

With inputs from agencies