The Telangana High Court today referred the "poachgate" case, involving four MLAs of the ruling Bharat Rashtra Samithi and other people allegedly connected to the BJP, to the Central Bureau of Investigation, dealing a severe blow to Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao and his BRS party. The state-appointed Special Investigation Team (SIT), which was looking into the politically sensitive matter, was also abolished by the High Court. The SIT has declared that it will contest the High Court's ruling. In response to claims made by BRS MLA Rohith Reddy that he attempted to snare MLAs from the Telangana government, BJP leader and attorney Ramchander Rao has issued a statement. According to Ramchander Rao, "There hasn't been any intimidation (in the CBI receiving the case), and it's a legal process." He stated that the "Enforcement Directorate is conducting an impartial investigation into alleged money laundering" and added that the BJP is not in any way influencing the ED.
