HYDERABAD: In a relief to Telangana government, a division bench of the Hyderabad High Court on Monday dismissed the PIL filed by Nagam Janardhan Reddy, former minister and Telangana Congress leader, seeking CBI probe into alleged fraud in manipulating the estimates of electromechanical equipment meant for Palamuru Rangareddy Lift Irrigation Project (PRLIP).
“There is no element of fraud or loss to public exchequer demonstrated by the petitioner in defence of the respondents as well as the corroborated materials provided by BHEL, Megha Engineering and Navayuga Engineering Co. There is no foundation for the plea that CBI be directed to conduct an investigation,” the bench observed while dismissing the PIL filed last year by Nagam, who questioned the pricing of 145 MW motors and pumps procured by the state for the purpose of PRLIP.
Nagam earlier submitted that the cost of each pump and motor was estimated by the Engineering Staff College of India (ESCI) as Rs 118 crore, but the state government had paid Rs 179 crore resulting in avoidable loss to the public exchequer. The agency through which the government has procured those motors and pumps from BHEL, has made enormous profits. He sought judicial intervention with the revision of value of electro mechanical equipments.