Hyderabad: The city-based Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Limited (MEIL), which has been facing allegations of receiving thousands of crores of rupees undue benefit in the just the Kaleshwaram lift irrigaiton scheme, donated close to Rs.1,200 crore to political parties by purchasing electoral bonds.
The MEIL, owned by P.V. Krishna Reddy, with an annual turnover of just Rs.200 crore in 2008 crossed Rs.8,000 crore with book order worth more than Rs.60,000 crore. The company stood second in the list of largest contributors after the “Lottery King” Santiago Martin’s Future Gaming and Hotels Services Pvt Ltd according to the data submitted by the State Bank of India to Supreme Court that was revealed by the Election Commission of India on Thursday.
Deccan Chronicle had carried a series of articles exposing the KLIS scam on which the Comptroller and Auditor General of India revealed that the company was paid an excess of Rs.5,000 crore in just four packages and the amount would be much higher as it executed another 17 packages, the details of which were not furnished to the country’s top most statutory auditing agency.
The income-tax department, which conducted raids on the company way back in 2019, issued a press release during that time in which it claimed to have found incriminating evidence to establish tax evasion of about Rs.1,900 crore. Indicating a nexus between MEIL and political parties, noted lawyer Prashant Bhushan posted in X: “The company gives 100s Crs in electoral bonds on April 11, 2023, and within a month it gets Rs 14,400 cr contract from BJP’s Maharastra government (sic).”
MEIL’s group company Western UP Power Transmission Company Ltd bought Rs.220 crore worth bonds, according to the data revealed by the Election Commission.
MEIL began its journey under Krishna Reddy’s uncle P. Pichi Reddy as a pipe manufacturer and specialised in irrigation projects but later diversified into oil and gas, power and electric vehicles.
Ironically, all the political parties in the two Telugu states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana accuse the company of receiving undue benefits from the government of the day but never probe into their own allegations after coming to power. The lone exception was the recently elected Revanth Reddy-led Congress government in Telangana which constituted a judicial commission to probe into irregularities in KLIS, majority of which was executed by the MEIL.
City based corporate hospital agglomerate Yashoda Hospitals, which enjoyed the patronage of previous BRS government, donated Rs.162 crore to political parties though it is not known yet which party received the amount as SBI did not match the bonds the companies purchased with the political parties. Rithwik Projects, owned by former MP C.M. Ramesh, bought electoral bonds worth Rs.45 crore while the city based international pharma company Dr Reddy purchased Rs.124 crore worth bonds.
Navayuga group which is also into executing infra projects donated Rs.77 crore, NCC Rs.61 crore, Hetero Rs.61 crore, Divis Rs.56 crore and Aurobindo Pharma Rs.51 crore.
