The Enforcement Directorate (ED) discovered that BRS MLA G Mahipal Reddy made Rs 300 crore from selling illegally excavated materials and avoided paying royalties to the government. The ED Hyderabad Zonal Office conducted searches at 10 locations in Hyderabad in connection with a money laundering case against M/s Santhosh Sand Granite Supply, Patancheru under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
The investigation began based on FIRs filed by Telangana Police against M/s Santhosh Sand Granite Supply, owned by Gudem Madhusudan Reddy. The firm was found to have unlawfully excavated and transported a large quantity of building stone road metal within and beyond permitted areas, resulting in an illegal profit of Rs 300 crore and evasion of Rs 39.08 crore in royalty payments to the government.
The ED probe revealed that the proceeds from the illegal transactions were not documented in bank records and were likely conducted in cash. This cash was then laundered and invested in real estate and other activities. During the search operations, Rs 19 lakh in unaccounted cash was seized, along with property documents in names of unrelated individuals suspected to be associates of the accused.
Mobile phones containing evidence of cash dealings were also confiscated, as well as bank locker keys. Further investigation is ongoing to uncover more incriminating evidence from the bank lockers.
