Governor likely to give nod to prosecute KTR

Hyderabad: Governor Jishnu Dev Varma, who is camping in Delhi for the last four days, is likely to give the nod to the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) to prosecute K.T. Rama Rao, former municipal administration and urban development minister and BRS working president, in the Rs 55 crore alleged irregularities in the holding of the Formula E race last year.

Sources said that Governor Varma, earlier Deputy Chief Minister of Tripura for long and having vast political experience, was examining the issue closely as he did not wish to be embroiled in a blame game in the manner of his predecessor Dr Tamilsai Soundararajan. He has reportedly got the clearance from the top leadership at the Centre in the current episode, and may take a decision on his return from Delhi.

A statement from Telangana BJP president and Union minister G. Kishan Reddy, who came out with a strong rebuttal to the charges of Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy that the BJP was responsible for the Governor not giving consent, gave enough indications that the BJP did not want to be blamed in the matter. Kishan Reddy made it clear that “the Governor is taking legal opinion and it normally takes time.”

The ACB is investigating the irregularities in paying `55 crore to the London-based organisers of the Formula E race in 2023, without obtaining prior approval from the RBI. Rama Rao is facing the charge that the amount was routed to his overseas account through an agency.

Kishan Reddy’s reiteration to the Congress government in the state to go for a CBI probe into the Kaleshwaram scam and phone-tapping operation also made it clear that the BJP wanted to shift the onus to the ruling party in the state for any delay in taking action against the accused. Kishan Reddy went on to state that the BJP had approached the High Court seeking a CBI probe into the phone-tapping operation during the BRS government tenure.

The Telangana BJP president also said that the non-approval for a CBI probe by the state government would make it clear for everyone to that the Congress and the BRS had struck and understanding and were shielding each other.

Kishan Reddy said: “Revanth Reddy is making baseless allegations with his limited knowledge. If the Governor has to give consent (in the Rama Rao case), he must first get legal opinion on the issue and it normally takes some time. It is highly improper to come to a conclusion and level baseless allegations.”

Kishan Reddy said that the BJP wanted an impartial probe into all the scams, whether done by the BRS or the Congress. “The two political parties are competing with each other to cover up the scams of BRS and administrative failures of Congress. The BJP takes the side of people and will not favour either the BRS or the Congress,” he said.

Condemning the Lagcherla incident, wherein a mob attacked the Vikarabad collector over land acquisition for pharma companies, Kishan Reddy said it was highly unbecoming on the part of the Revanth Reddy government to file cases against farmers of the Chief Minister’s constituency. The government must identify the persons responsible for the attack and take action against them, Kishan Reddy said.