After spending 52 days in jail in an alleged skill development scam, former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrabau Naidu on Tuesday came out of Rajahmundry Central Prison following interim bail granted by the Andhra Pradesh High Court.
His family members and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) leaders and hundreds of party workers welcomed him after he emerged from prison.
Addressing people outside the jail, he said that in his 40-year-long political career, he had done nothing wrong.
“Neither did I do anything wrong, nor did I allow anyone to do anything wrong,” he said.
Naidu thanked the Telugu people in both Andhra Pradesh and Telangana and other parts of the country and abroad for their support and solidarity.
He said he would always remain indebted to them for their support and for highlighting the development works he had undertaken as the Chief Minister.
The TDP chief also thanked political parties and their leaders for their support. He especially mentioned Jana Sena Party (JSP) leader and actor Pawan Kalyan, who has declared that JSP and TDP will together contest next year’s elections.
Naidu later left for Amaravati in a big convoy of vehicles even as the jail’s surroundings echoed with the slogans of “Jai Babu Jai, Jai Babu”.
Earlier the High Court granted interim bail to Naidu for four weeks on health grounds, subject to certain conditions.
Naidu was directed to submit a surety of Rs.1 lakh. The court asked him not to influence anyone related to the case and surrender before the court on November 29.
The orders came as a relief for the 73-year-old leader who has been in jail for the last 52 days.
The Crime Investigation Department (CID) had arrested Naidu on September 9 in the alleged skill development scam which took place when he was the Chief Minister.
The next day a court in Vijayawada had sent him to judicial custody.