A dramatic twist in the Hyderabad Formula E car race saga has emerged with former minister and BRS working president KTR receiving notices from the Enforcement Directorate (ED). These notices are based on the allegations of money laundering and violations under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), and the notice requires KTR to appear for questioning on January 7.
Besides KTR, another senior IAS officer, Aravind Kumar, and former Chief Engineer, HMDA, B.L.N. Reddy, have also been issued summons by the ED for interrogation on January 2 and 3. This case was filed initially by the Anti-Corruption Bureau when, after an FIR was lodged there, out of due concern over certain discrepancies in the money transfer pointed out in it, the ED took it up.
On Friday, ACB filed a counter affidavit before the High Court stating KTR misused government funds during his period of being a minister. In an affidavit, it claimed KTR had made unauthorized payments without the cabinet and finance department’s approval, violating all norms of financial procedures. More importantly, it noted transfer of over ₹54 crores to a foreign company without proper authorization caused the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority an additional financial burden of ₹8 crores.
In response, KTR has filed a petition in the High Court, seeking the dismissal of the case. The ACB argues that this petition is an attempt to obstruct the investigation and has urged the court to reject it.
Defending himself, KTR has clarified that it was the responsibility of the relevant department officials to oversee the financial and policy-related matters of government contracts, not the minister. He further emphasized that, as a minister, he was not tasked with managing these aspects. In his petition, KTR argued that HMDA, as a legal body, should have been responsible for handling the decisions related to the Formula E race and associated payments. He also pointed out that any payment exceeding ₹10 crore should have gone through proper government approval, which, according to him, should have been handled by the concerned department officials.