VIJAYAWADA: YSRC Parliamentary Party leader V Vijayasai Reddy wrote a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday seeking action against Narasapuram MP K Raghu Rama Krishna Raju and the owner of a private television channel for alleged hawala transactions of one million euros in violation of the PMLA and FEMA.
Vijayasai, in the letter, said the Andhra Pradesh police found several pieces of evidence which prove a case of money laundering and violation of provisions of Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), 1999.
The AP Crime Investigation Department (APCID), during its investigation into a case registered against the MP, has conducted forensic analysis of Raju’s phone and it revealed the hawala transaction, he said. Submitting the evidence including transcription of phone communications between both the accused and a letter from CID to the Enforcement Department informing it of fraudulent transactions between the MP and the owner of the news channel, Vijayasai urged the Prime Minister to have a case registered against the accused and ensure that Raju does not get added to the list of Indian fugitives. He sought custodial interrogation of Narasapuram MP to unearth his dubious transactions.
Delegation meets FM
A delegation of YSRC MPs led by Vijayasai met Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and submitted a representation seeking action against Raju on the alleged hawala transactions.The delegation submitted another memorandum requesting Sitharaman to accord approval for the revised cost estimates of the Polavaram Irrigation Project as recommended by the Polavaram Project Authority and Central Water Commission for Rs 55,656.87 crore at 2017-18 price level. The project works including R&R works can be completed as per schedule, ie, by June 2022, only after getting clearance to the RCE, he said.
‘Only irrigation component’
Earlier in the Rajya Sabha, Jal Shakti Minister, in a written reply to Vijaysai’s question, reiterated that the Centre will only bear the irrigation component as per the estimates on April 1, 2014, while informing the House that the State has informed the ministry that due to changes in the designs of Polavaram heaworks, the expenditure has escalated from Rs 5,535 crore to Rs 7,192 crore.