How Chandrababu Naidu’s dramatic arrest unfolded in Andhra's Nandyal from 3 am

“Does a former Chief Minister not deserve minimum respect? Why can’t you wait for morning”? These were the questions fired by TDP leader Chandrababu Naidu at the Andhra Pradesh police force that came around 3 am to arrest him. Though the Nandyal police and the Crime Investigation Department (CID) eventually arrested Naidu during the early hours of Saturday, September 9 for allegedly orchestrating the Andhra Pradesh Skill Development Corporation Scam, the drama played out for several hours..The CID along with a contingent of police led by Nandyal range Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of Police Raghurami Reddy arrived at Naidu’s camp office post 3 am in Nandyal for the arrest but faced resistance from a sea of TDP cadres as well as from the SPG forces guarding Naidu who argued that Naidu couldn’t be arrested until 5:30 am. The cadres demanded to know what the case was and why the police had come at that hour to arrest Naidu. They demanded that he be allowed to rest for a few hours before any police action. “What is the FIR? Why have you come here?” one TDP leader questioned. As the police refused to answer these questions, the anger grew and so did the resistance. Many cadres were dragged away by the police.Once the officials reached Naidu, he sat down on a chair with his lawyers and cadres flanking him. “What is the FIR? Where is the prima facie evidence?” Naidu asked the police. In the notice served to Naidu, senior officer of CID's Economic Offences Wing M Dhanunjayudu said, "It is to inform you that you have been arrested... at 6 am at R K Function Hall, Gnanapuram, H/o Moolasagaram, Nandyal town and it is a non-bailable offence." The FIR quoted dates back to 2021. This FIR which was lodged in connection with the skill development scam named CEO & MD Ghanta Subba Rao of the Andhra Pradesh Skill Development Corporation (APSDC), Director K Lakshminarayan and others, however Naidu was not named in the FIR..Telugu Desam Party (TDP) government under Naidu established the APSDC to train unemployed youth to make them employable. With an estimated project cost of Rs 3,300 crore, a memorandum of understanding (MoU) was signed by the APSDC and a consortium consisting of the companies Siemens India Software India Ltd and Design Tech Systems Pvt Ltd (DTSPL). The Andhra government officers were accused of releasing Rs 370 crores without any tenders and then siphoning this money using shell companies. When the matter came up in the Andhra Legislative Assembly in March 2023, Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy alleged that Naidu had “expertly planned, directed, and carried out the scam and ensured that his government hastily paid 371 crore in five tranches over the course of just three months.” “Without any proof, any prima facie evidence or an explanation as to why I have been named in the FIR, the police have arrested me. The police, the government have unceremoniously arrested me while I have been working for the welfare of the people,” Chandrababu Naidu said during his arrest. In a video which has gone viral on social media, DIG Raghurami Reddy can be seen saying, “As a public servant I am carrying out my duties. You have been served with an arrest warrant.” In response to which, TDP supporters and Naidu himself argue that there was no legal basis for such an arrest and state that there isn’t even a clear mention in the paperwork of the case as to why Naidu is being arrested. After the arrest, Naidu’s son Nara Lokesh was seen arguing with police officials who insisted that there would be a law and order problem if Lokesh went ahead. “I will give it to you in writing. I am a son, a family member. I have the right to meet my father,” he said. Nara Lokesh was however not allowed to meet his father and he sat in protest on the road..The scam came to light after a whistleblower complained to the Anti Corruption Bureau (ACB) in 2018, following which documentary evidence was allegedly destroyed. In addition, the GST intelligence wing and IT Department was also investigating the case, even before the state government took up the investigation. Later, based on an FIR from the Andhra Crime Investigation Department (CID), the ED took up the case. Naidu has been booked under Sections 166, 167, 418, 420, 465, 488, 471, 409, 201 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) read with section 13 (1) (D) of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

How Chandrababu Naidu’s dramatic arrest unfolded in Andhra's Nandyal from 3 am

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