HYDERABAD: Alleging irregularities in Hyderabad PM Ekta Mall at Raidurg, a project funded by the Centre, BRS working president KT Rama Rao on Monday demanded cancellation of the tender and an independent investigation into the issue.
The PM Ekta Mall (Unity Mall) initiative was announced in the Union Budget 2023-24 for promotion and sale of ODOP products (One District, One Product), Geographical Indication (GI) products and other handicrafts from across the country.
In a letter to Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, Rama Rao demanded that the Centre immediately stop further release of funds for the project and intervene before any irreversible decisions are taken.
The former minister alleged that the state government framed questionable tender conditions that could result in disproportionate benefits to a private developer at the cost of public resources.
Rama Rao also said that the proposed project cost is around `2,059.81 crore, excluding the value of land, and that it has received around `202 crore in central assistance. The project is proposed on approximately 6.3 acres of prime land at Raidurg, with around 27 lakh square feet of built-up area, he added.
Land allotted to firm run by CM’s brother: Krishank Alleging that Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy was misusing his position and the Chief Minister’s Office to further the business interests of his family members, BRS official spokesperson Manne Krishank demanded an independent investigation into the allotment of land in the “Fourth City” area to Tesseract Advanced Systems Pvt Ltd, whose chairman he alleged was Anumula Kondal Reddy, the chief minister’s brother.
Speaking to reporters here, Krishank wondered: “Why does the chief minister repeatedly accord priority to ‘Fourth City’ — be it a government meeting, a review meeting or a Summit?” Demanding that the government disclose all land allotments made in the area, he also sought to know how land worth crores was allotted to a company with just `1 lakh capital and zero employees. He alleged that the Tesseract Advanced Systems had a paid-up capital of only `1 lakh, while its latest annual report showed zero employees.
Krishank demanded the immediate cancellation of the land allotment made to Tesseract Advanced Systems. He also demanded that Revanth Reddy resign as chief minister to ensure a fair and impartial probe into the issue.
