Ground weak for fresh scam probe

Naidu voice sample was not taken with court nod

Forensic reports from the Mumbai and London laboratories confirming the audio samples as those of AP Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu in the cash-forvote scam may not stand in court as the sample collection procedures were not according to law, said experts.

Mr Naidu cannot be implicated unless the TS Anti Corruption Bureau receives a report from the AP Forensic Science Laboratory or the Central Forensic Science Laboratory or any private FSL. It has to send the seized phone conversation between Mr Naidu and Anglo Indian independent MLA Elvis Stephenson and Mr Naidu’s voice sample collected with the ACB court’s permission.

So far the TS ACB hasn’t sent Mr Naidu’s voice samples to the FSL for testing.

The complainant, YSRC MLA Alla Ramakrishna Reddy, had obtained the forensic reports from the labs through his counsel by sending conversation collected from a TV channel and Mr Naidu’s speech at Davos that was downloaded from the Internet.

Legal experts said that these reports would only help the petitioner to support his plea to seek investigation and ACB couldn’t rely on them to proceed against Mr Naidu.

These reports have put the focus on the ACB, which has been dragging its feet regarding the investigation by not sending Mr Naidu’s voice samples to the FSL.

It has also given strength to the argument that the ACB has to proceed in the case and verify the conclusion of the London and Mumbai reports officially.