Rs 118 Crore: Why is Chandrababu Naidu under IT radar

Hyderabad: The Income-Tax Department has issued a show cause notice to Chandrababu Naidu, the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) chief and former Andhra Pradesh chief minister, for having an undisclosed income of Rs 118 crore, which he allegedly received as kickbacks from infrastructure companies.

In the show cause notices — issued by the IT Central Circle in Hyderabad — it is mentioned that “Manoj Vasudev Pardasany (MVP), who was taking part in the tendering process in Andhra Pradesh on behalf of Shapoorji Pallonji & Co Pvt Ltd since December 2017, siphoned off Rs 118 crore funds from Shapoorji Pallonji (SP) and L&T and delivered them to Chandrababu Naidu through companies such as Phoenix Infra & Pour Trading.”

The I-T notices were supposed to be issued on August 4, 2023, but have come to light after a report published on September 1 in the Hindustan Times, explained the show cause notices mentioning Chandrababu Naidu.

The notices have shocked the political circles, who were expecting an alliance between the TDP and the BJP in the upcoming elections. It further sparked political controversy and added fuel to the YSRCP’s allegations of bribes and corruption in Naidu’s announced capital, Amaravati.

Leaving no chance, the YSRCP launched an all-out attack on Chandrababu Naidu after the show cause notices came to light. Perni Nani, a former minister and YSRCP MLA, alleged that “Chandrababu’s secret has been caught by the Income-Tax Department. A Rs 118 crore bribe was taken by him in the name of infrastructure subcontracts. In the name of developing Andhra Pradesh, he in fact was pocketing all the money. Looting took place in the name of the capital Amaravati. He has no face to show anyone now!” The TDP, on the other hand, remained silent.

L&T, Shapoorji Pallonji competed for AP projects during Naidu’s government

Shapoorji Pallonji is a renowned company that constructed the Atal Tunnel, AP and Telangana Secretariats, along with the new state capital, Amaravati. It was also awarded the CC and BT roads project in Guntur at a cost of Rs 960 crore, while the Larsen and Toubro (L&T) was building the base infrastructure for Amaravati. The project is worth Rs 9,000 crore and includes roads, bridges, stormwater drains, sewerage, and utility ducts for power and information and communications technology (ICT). It also constructed Andhra’s Assembly in a record time of 192 days.

Both the conglomerates, L&T and Shapoorji Pallonji competed to win major projects in Andhra Pradesh during Naidu’s tenure. They also shared the construction of the temporary secretariat in 2016 and the Amaravati housing project in 2017. They also bagged several other projects during Naidu’s time. However, their projects were put on hold after AP chief minister Jagan Mohan Reddy assumed power and announced plans to create three capitals for Andhra Pradesh.