HYDERABAD: Former MLA and ex-chairman of the Telangana State Civil Supplies Corporation Limited (TSCSCL) Peddi Sudarshan Reddy filed a public interest litigation (PIL) in the Telangana High Court, alleging irregularities in the corporation that resulted in over Rs 1,100 crore loss to the state exchequer.
In his petition, Sudarshan Reddy claimed that the TSCSCL has been engaging in illegal sales of paddy beyond the stipulated 90-day tender period at significantly lower prices than the prevailing market prices. He specifically points out that paddy was sold at Rs 20,040 per metric tonne (MT) though the market price was Rs 22,300 per MT. This discrepancy, he contends, has already resulted in a loss of Rs 188.7 crore, with the losses continuing to escalate due such transactions. He also highlighted the irregularities in sale and subsequent procurement of sanna biyyam (fine variety rice) paddy.
According to the petitioner, TSCSCL sold sanna biyyam paddy at Rs 24,071 per MT and just a month later, the same officer responsible for the sale tender issued a procurement tender for sanna biyyam rice at a much higher price of Rs 56,799 per MT.
The petitioner argued that this practice of selling at low prices while buying at inflated rates is a deliberate attempt to benefit specific bidders at the expense of public funds. He further alleged that some of the bidders who secured contracts in both the selling and buying tenders were the same entities, raising questions about potential collusion. The estimated loss on this front alone is pegged at Rs 350 crore, he said.
He also sought a directive for the TSCSCL to forfeit the Earnest Money Deposit (EMD) and Security Deposit (SD) from the private respondent millers involved in these transactions. The PIL is expected to be listed before the chief justice’s bench within the next few days.