The Andhra Pradesh Crime Investigation Department (CID) on Tuesday, September 19 has issued another Prisoner Transit (PT) warrant against former Chief Minister and opposition party leader Chandrababu Naidu who is currently under 14-day judicial custody at Rajahmundry Central Jail. The CID has filed the petition at the Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) court in Vijayawada, charging Naidu as the main accused for misappropriation of funds in the alleged AP Fibernet Scam.
On September 9, 2021, the AP CID launched its investigation into the Andhra Pradesh State FiberNet Limited, pointing out irregularities and alleging misappropriation of funds to the tune of Rs 321 crores. The CID filed a FIR and named 16 people and two companies as the accused in the case under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Prevention of Corruption Act. On Tuesday September 19, the CID issued a memo adding Naidu as the accused (A-25) and submitted it to the ACB court. The investigating agency has also submitted a petition seeking PT, as he is currently under judicial custody in the Central Prison, Rajahmundry.
The CID alleged that Naidu personally appointed Vemuri Harikrishna Prasad as the member of Governing Council-Governance Authority, despite his criminal background. They alleged that the former CM gave approval for the estimates of the fiber net project without considering the fact that no market survey was done for the process of the items. “Chandra Babu Naidu brought pressure on the senior Government officials to include Vemuri Harikrishna Prasad in various tender evaluation committees to revoke the blacklisting done by the Government, then prevailing against M/s Terasoftware to finally award the tender to M/s Terasoftware by silencing the protests from other bidders such as M/s Pace Power,” the CID alleged.
The tender process was manipulated to allot the work order for the Phase-1 of the AP fibernet Project of Rs 330 Cr to Terasoftware, CID alleged.
As a component of the Indian government's Bharat Net project, the FiberNet project sought to offer internet and telephone services to every household in the state. The Union government provided the FiberNet project under the National Optic Fibre Network with an initial financial contribution of Rs 3,840 crore.
The other accused in the case are Vemuri Hari Krishna Prasad, Managing Director of NET INDIA and Koganti Sambasiva Rao.
Naidu was first arrested in the alleged AP Skill state Development Scam (APSSDC). He was later booked in the Inner Ring Road Scam. The ACB court had remanded Naidu for a 14-day judicial custody in APSSDC scam on September 10. The AP high court on Tuesday has adjourned his anticipatory bail plea in the Inner Ring Road Scam case.
CM Jagan established a Cabinet Sub-Committee, headed by Finance Minister Buganna Rajendranath in June, 2019 to investigate various 'financial frauds' allegedly committed by the previous Chandrababu Naidu government. The committee then asserted that they had discovered scams worth Rs 700 crore that had been committed by the Naidu’s government.