In a major setback to the opposition Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) working president and former minister KT Rama Rao, the Telangana High Court on Tuesday dismissed his petition seeking quashing of the FIR registered by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) accusing him of indulging in financial irregularities in organising the Formula E Race in Hyderabad when he was the minister.
The high court, which reserved its order on December 31 after hearing arguments by the petitioner and the ACB, delivered its judgement, which has come as a shot in the arm for the state’s probe agency.
With this, the decks have been cleared for the possible arrest of the opposition leader. His residence in Jubilee Hills has become a beehive of activity with several BRS leaders calling on him and engaging in a huddle to chalk out the future course of action.
The ACB has speeded up the investigation after obtaining clearance from the state governor Jishnu Dev Varma for prosecuting the former minister in a case that has now acquired political overtones.
Following the HC order, KTR said in a post on X that he believed in the judiciary and that justice would prevail.
KTR, who figures as the number one in the case, is accused of having facilitated the payment of Rs 46 crore in foreign exchange to London-based Formula E Operations in October 2023, for the conduct of the second edition of the race in Hyderabad in February 2024 which, subsequently, did not take place.
To move Supreme Court
After the high court delivered its judgement, KTR is understood to have discussed its implications and is reportedly contemplating moving the Supreme Court against the order.
Senior Supreme Court advocate Siddhartha Dave, appearing for KTR in the high court, maintained that the sections under which his client had been booked did not apply to him.
The ACB could not establish any corruption angle in the case, he said and pointed out that KTR had not benefited personally from the deal in any way.
“There was no corruption element in the case,” he pointed out.
Later in the day, KTR wrote on X that his comeback would be stronger than the setback he is currently facing. “Mark my words, Our comeback will be stronger than this setback,” he wrote on the microblogging site.
“Your lies won’t shatter me. Your words won’t diminish me. Your actions won’t obscure my vision. This cacophony won’t silence me! Today’s obstacles will give way to tomorrow’s triumph. The truth will shine brighter with time!” KTR said.
“I respect our judiciary and my unwavering belief that justice will prevail. My fight for truth continues, and soon, the world will also witness it,” he added.
What is the Formula e-race case?
On December 19, the ACB booked him in connection with alleged irregularities in the Formula E-race, an international electric car racing event, hosted by Hyderabad in February 2023 when KTR was minister for municipal administration on urban development.
The FIR was registered under the Prevention of Corruption Act as well as under IPC sections 409 (criminal breach of trust) and 120B (criminal conspiracy). The case relates to alleged mismanagement of funds and irregular payments.
According to the FIR, KTR failed to take clearance from the state cabinet before authorising former Municipal Administration and Urban Development (MAUD) principal secretary Arvind Kumar to pay Rs 45 crore to FOE.
The ACB has alleged that the Hyderabad Urban Development Authority (HMDA) paid Rs 45 crore in two instalments to FOE. The money transfers, in British pounds, violated the rules of the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), which imposed a fine of Rs 8 crore on the Telangana government.
This fine was paid by the Congress government after coming to power in December 2023, the FIR said.
According to the FIR, when the new government investigated why the RBI had imposed the fine, the alleged violations and financial irregularities in the racing event were discovered.
While KTR was named the primary accused, Arvind Kumar was named the second accused and former HMDA chief engineer BLN Reddy the third.
Kumar was the Principal Secretary of MAUD from 2021 to January 2024. He was also the commissioner of HMDA. He had been issued a memo by the Revanth Reddy government to explain the money transfers. In his reply, he submitted that he did so on the instructions of KTR, the then-minister.
ED enters the scene
On December 28, based on the ACB FIR, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) issued a summons to KTR to appear before it on January 7. Arvind Kumar and BLN Reddy had been asked to appear on January 2 and 3, respectively, and they recorded their statements. The ED is conducting the investigation under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The ED is also investigating if there were any violations under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) as a transfer of Rs 45 crore to a foreign entity is involved in the case.
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