Hyderabad: BRS working president K.T. Rama Rao on Thursday defended the payment of Rs 55 crore to FIA for the Formula-E race in the city, which was cancelled by the Congress government.
Rama Rao, the former municipal administration and urban development minister, said that he signed a file approving the payment, it was well within his scope.
“The entire effort was to improve Hyderabad’s brand image, and that of the state, attract investments, which we managed to do and everything that was done, was done transparently and legally,” he said.
Rama Rao accused Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy of causing a loss of Rs 55 crore to the state as the amount was not refunded after he cancelled the race, and the associated benefits from holding the Formula-E race which would have amounted to Rs 700 to Rs 800 crore.
“Revanth Reddy wants Hyderabad to host the Olympics as he said recently but did not want a Formula E race just because we did it. He brought shame to the city and the state by cancelling the race. If he wants to imprison me out of political vendetta, I will not back down. I instructed former HMDA commissioner Arvind Kumar to make the payment. If I am put in prison on trumped up charges, I will do yoga there, come back fit, and go on my padayatra,” Rama Rao said.
The BRS leader explained that the decision to make the payment to FIA, the organising body of the E-Prix races, was taken as the sponsor in the previous edition of the race in Hyderabad pulled out saying it was not a viable proposition for them.
“The Telangana government decided to fund the Formula E race to boost Hyderabad's brand, attract investments, and create employment opportunities. We would have found another sponsor, recouped the payment from the sponsorship amount,” he said.
