HYDERABAD: In a major development in the Formula E race case, the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) has granted permission to prosecute senior IAS officer Arvind Kumar, who is A-2 in the case relating to alleged financial irregularities linked to the event.
The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB), which is already probing the matter, is now preparing to file a chargesheet against all the accused, including BRS working president KT Rama Rao.
Earlier, the Governor had accorded sanction to prosecute Rama Rao, the former Municipal Administration and Urban Development minister, who is named as the prime accused in the case. With prosecution approvals now in place for both the political executive and the senior administrative official, the ACB is expected to move ahead with filing the chargesheet shortly.
The case pertains to alleged irregularities in the organisation of the second edition of the Formula E race held in Hyderabad in 2024. The ACB registered a case against Rama Rao, former special chief secretary (MAUD) Arvind Kumar and Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority chief engineer BLN Reddy for allegedly diverting about `55 crore to certain foreign companies associated with Formula E race operations.
Investigators have alleged that funds were transferred from HMDA accounts to a foreign Formula E entity without obtaining mandatory Cabinet approval or adhering to prescribed financial procedures.
According to officials, prosecution sanction was a prerequisite for filing the chargesheet, particularly in the case of IAS officer Arvind Kumar, as approval from the DoPT is mandatory for prosecuting senior civil servants.