Former Andhra CM Chandrababu Naidu arrested in corruption case

Amaravati: Former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) supremo N. Chandrababu Naidu was arrested on Saturday morning in connection with a Skill Development Corporation corruption case.

The TDP leader, who is also the Opposition leader in the state Assembly, was arrested in Nandyal district by the state police's Crime Investigation Department (CID) team headed by Deputy Superintendent of Police M. Dhananjayudu.

Naidu’s son Nara Lokesh was also taken into custody for staging a protest against the arrest of his father.

A notice served to the TDP chief reads, "It is to inform you that you have been arrested...U/s (under section) 120(B), 166, 167, 418, 420, 465, 468, 471, 409, 201, 109 r/w 34 & 37 IPC and Sec 12, 13 (2) r/w 13 (1) (c) and (d) of Prevention of Corruption Act, 1998 of CID."

According to the notice, Naidu cannot be released on bail as it is a non-bailable offence and he can only seek bail through court.

In 2014, Andhra Pradesh’s former TDP government led by Chandrababu Naidu had signed an MoU worth Rs 3,300 crore with a consortium involving corporate giants. A Government Order was also issued for setting up six centers of excellence for skill development.

In 2017, the tax investigation wing of GST- Intelligence Pune unearthed the scam.

Also, during the probe, the CID officials found that no tenders were called for the project, and corporate giants who had agreed to establish skill centres had not spent a single rupee from their own resources on the project and instead it was siphoned off a major portion contributed by the state government as its share for the 10 percent of the project cost, amounting to Rs 371 crore.

The money was allegedly diverted to major shell companies.

Meanwhile, Chandrababu Naidu claimed that his arrest was "undemocratic and unconstitutional".

“The authorities are not showing evidence of prima facie wrongdoing or involvement in the case," he maintained.

“I am being targeted as I am raising people’s issues,” he added.

With inputs from IANS