New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has launched an investigation under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) into an alleged large-scale liquor scam in Andhra Pradesh. The agency’s Hyderabad office has reportedly sought comprehensive details from the state’s Criminal Investigation Department (CID), which has been probing the matter through a Special Investigation Team (SIT), reported Deccan Herald.The ED’s request includes information on identified bank accounts, properties, arrested individuals, remand reports, and any charge sheets filed in connection with the alleged irregularities that purportedly took place during the previous YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) government’s tenure (2019-2024).This development follows an ongoing SIT investigation, appointed by the current TDP-led state government. The SIT has allegedly traced a significant money trail involving alleged kickbacks, potentially implicating a sitting Lok Sabha member and a former Rajya Sabha member from the YSRCP. The SIT estimates the scam could be worth around Rs. 4,000 crore, with allegations that liquor manufacturers were extorted for crores monthly. Investigators also alleged that between 2019 and 2024, liquor sales in the state were restricted to cash-only transactions.The SIT had previously arrested Kessireddy Raja Shekhar Reddy (Raj Kasireddy), who served as an IT Adviser to the then Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy. According to the SIT’s remand report, Kasireddy was allegedly a “key person” in a criminal conspiracy to generate kickbacks by manipulating liquor procurement processes within the Andhra Pradesh State Beverages Corporation Limited (APSBCL).Kasireddy’s counsel has vehemently denied any confessionThe SIT’s report also claimed that Kasireddy, during interrogation after his April 21 arrest, admitted guilt and implicated senior YSRCP figures, including an alleged “endorsement” from former Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy for policy changes. However, the report noted Kasireddy refused to sign this alleged confessional statement.Kasireddy’s counsel has vehemently denied any confession, alleging political motivation behind the probe and procedural misconduct by the SIT. The YSRCP leadership has also dismissed the allegations as a “fabricated political drama,” asserting a lack of evidence and claiming the real irregularities occurred during the previous TDP regime.The ED’s probe will now focus on the suspected laundering of these alleged kickback proceeds, adding a central agency’s scrutiny to the ongoing state-level investigations. Kasireddy remains in judicial custody as investigations by both the SIT and now the ED continue.