Hyderabad, Nov 7 (PTI) The Telangana government has written to Governor Jishnu Dev Varma seeking permission to register an FIR against BRS working president and MLA K T Rama Rao over alleged irregularities during the previous BRS regime with regard to conducting the Formula-E race in Hyderabad.
The Governor’s nod is awaited, official sources said on Thursday.
The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) of the state government is looking into the issue, they said.
The Municipal Administration department had reportedly urged the ACB to investigate the matter.
Earlier this year, the government had sought an explanation from a senior bureaucrat over entering into the agreement concerning the Formula-E race allegedly without the approval of the competent authority and also making a payment of Rs 55 crore.
Rama Rao, who was Municipal Administration minister during the previous BRS regime, was instrumental in hosting the race last year in Hyderabad.
Though the race was supposed to be held in February this year as well, it was cancelled after the Congress government assumed office in December 2023.
Responding to reports on the government seeking the Governor’s permission to register an FIR against him, Rama Rao on Thursday said he is ready to face any inquiry.
He said he has not received any notice from government agencies as part of inquiry into the issue.
“It is the Governor’s discretion. I have no objection if the Governor gives permission for prosecution. We welcome it. We are ready for any inquiry,” he told reporters here.
Rama Rao said his intention, as Municipal Administration minister during the BRS government, was to make Hyderabad the “mobility capital of India”. This envisioned promotion of manufacturing, innovation and research and racing of electric vehicles, he said.
The eco-system in Hyderabad benefited by about Rs 700 crore with the city playing host to the race in 2023 though the amount spent by government was only about Rs 30-40 crore, he said.
He said the government had decided to fund the race, proposed to be organised in 2024, after a private promoter company had backed out. The idea was to promote the city’s brand image, he said.
He said he had signed a file to pay Rs 55 crore in his capacity as minister to promote Hyderabad’s brand image and to see that the city retains its place in the race circuit.
Where is the corruption in the process, he asked and claimed that a case should be filed against the government for breaching the contract and “hurting the image of Hyderabad”.
He alleged that the Congress government in Telangana had hurt the city’s brand image by cancelling the race. PTI SJR VVK SJR KH
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