PV's son held on charge of duping Rajni Kanth

By Our Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD, FEB. 3. Dr. P. V. Ranga Rao, former Minister and elder son of former Prime Minister, Mr. P. V. Narasimha Rao, was today arrested and remanded to judicial custody for 14 days on charges of duping film star Rajani Kanth to the tune of Rs. 2.06 crores. Dr. Ranga Rao's former personal assistant, Mr. Gopalakrishna Reddy, was also arrested on similar charges.While being shifted to the Chanchalguda jail, Dr. Ranga Rao reportedly complained of pain in the chest and was shifted to the Nizam's Institute of Medical Sciences (NIMS) amidst security.

In his complaint to the city police, Mr. Rajani Kanth alleged that Gopalakrishna Reddy had requested him to act in a movie to be produced on the life of Raghavendra Swamy. When he refused, he was approached with another proposal to finance since a similar venture by them was abandoned midway for want of funds. Believing their version, he had given them Rs. 2.06 crores.However, when he started enquiring about the progress of the movie, he learnt that no such movie was being produced and that ``all funds were misappropriated by P.V. Ranga Rao and Gopalakrishna Reddy for their personal use,'' a police press release said. Later on demand Gopalakrishna Reddy issued a cheque for Rs. 2.06 crores, but it bounced. When told about this, Reddy admitted his guilt and stated that major portion of the amount was utilised to clear debts of Dr. Ranga Rao.

The film actor then approached Dr. Ranga Rao who had given another cheque, which was also dishonoured. Preliminary investigations disclosed that the money collected from Rajani Kanth was spent for clearing off the accumulated debts of Dr. Ranga Rao during bye-elections in Hanumakonda constituency, for his heart surgery and also for the luxurious life enjoyed by Gopalakrishna Reddy, the press note said.

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : Southern States
Previous : MoU signed on good governance
Next     : High-level Panama team interacts with A.P.
           entrepreneurs