Formula-E race case | The story so far, till January 9, 2025
The Hindu
ACB and ED investigate Formula-E deal irregularities, summoning accused officials including former Minister K.T. Rama Rao for questioning.
The quizzing of Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) working president and former Minister K.T. Rama Rao on Thursday (January 9, 2025) by the Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) follows a months-long legal wrangling and investigation into the Formula-E-deal with both the ACB and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) summoning three accused for questioning in the first 10 days of January.
The case was set in motion when principal secretary to government, Municipal Administration and Urban Development (MAUD), M. Dana Kishore filed a complaint with ACB on October 18, 2024 about the loss to exchequer due to ₹54.88 crore irregularities in Formula-E deal. The complaint alleged that the payment was made to Formula-E Operations Limited (FEO) by Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) without necessary approvals from the Cabinet or the Finance Department.
On December 16, 2024, the State Cabinet was briefed about the green flag given by Governor Jishnu Dev Varma to book a case against the former minister KTR.
Director General of ACB issued an order to register a FIR on December 18, 2024, 5.30 p.m. On December 19, 2024, the ACB booked a case against the KTR, former special chief secretary to government, MAUD department Arvind Kumar and former Chief Engineer of HMDA B.L.N. Reddy.
A day later, on December 20, the ED recorded Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) based on the FIR filed by the ACB.
The ACB summoned Mr. Rao on January 6, 2025. However, the former minister returned without appearing before the ACB after he was stopped by police who said advocate cannot accompany him. He was issued fresh notice to appear on January 9.
The ED also summoned the accused officials. The Minister was asked to appear before the ED on January 7, 2025, while Arvind Kumar and B.L.N. Reddy were summoned to appear on January 2 and 3 respectively. Following a request by the accused officials, the ED also gave time with the fresh dates — January 16 (KTR), 8 (Mr. Reddy) and 9 (Mr. Kumar) — for quizzing.
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