The arrest of Gali Janardhana Reddy, former BJP minister and mining baron from Bellary, on the charge of attempting to bribe an Enforcement Directorate official assumes wider ramifications because the move comes while the Supreme Court is starting hearings today on the CBI scandal. The long running mining scandal involving the Reddy brothers bears similarities with the CBI case. In both, the key issue investigators and the supreme court appointed probe committee is examining is the charge that attempts were made to guarantee protection from investigation in exchange for bribes.