Telangana HC bars ACB from arresting KTR till Dec 30

Hyderabad, Dec 20 (IANS) In a relief to Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) working president and former minister K. T. Rama Rao, the Telangana High Court on Friday barred the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) from arresting him till December 30 in Formula-E race case.

The court passed the interim order on a quash petition filed by K. T. Rama Rao (KTR).

While granting relief to KTR, the court allowed the investigation to continue and directed the state government to file its counter by December 23. The court adjourned the hearing to December 27.

The ACB on Thursday registered a case against KTR for alleged misuse of government funds in conducting the Formula E race in Hyderabad last year when BRS was in power.

During the arguments on KTR’s lunch motion petition, Advocate General Sudershan Reddy requested the court not to pass an interim order as the investigation into the case has just started.

Senior lawyers Sundaram, Prabhakar Rao and Gandra Mohan Rao argued the case on behalf of KTR. They contended that the sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act invoked by the ACB do not apply to the case and sought orders to quash the FIR.

KTR’s lawyers argued that the case was registered against him due to political vendetta. They submitted to the court that ACB did not follow the Supreme Court’s direction for a preliminary probe before registering cases against public representation.

The case relates to the alleged unauthorised transfer of Rs 55 crore from the Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) to Formula E Operations (FEO) without proper approvals.

The FIR was registered under Sections 13(1)(A) and 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, along with Sections 409 and 120(B) of the Indian Penal Code.

It is alleged that on the direction of then industry minister KTR, the HMDA paid Rs 55 crore to a foreign company in violation of RBI guidelines. The payments were reportedly made without obtaining approvals from the Cabinet or the Finance Department.

KTR’s lawyers argued that the ACB had failed to specify where and how the corruption took place but invoked sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

The Advocate General contended that registering the FIR was only the first step. He said sections will be invoked based on the facts which come to light during investigations.

The court was told that the decision to register a case was taken two months ago and the case was registered after receiving the nod from the state Governor.

The Advocate General said that rules were violated in payment of over Rs 56 crore. He told the court that as the payment was made in foreign currency, this had put an additional burden on HMDA.

When the court asked what was the role of KTR in making the payment, the Advocate General replied that the role would be known during the investigation.

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