Hyderabad: Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy Monday said his Congress government has declined Rs 100 crore offered by the Adani Foundation to help set up the ‘Young India Skills University’ in Hyderabad.
The decision came in the wake of sensational bribery and fraud charges against Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani and his associates by US prosecutors, in connection with a mega solar power purchase agreement between Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) and various states, including neighbouring Andhra Pradesh.
On Thursday, when the US court indictment came to light, opposition BRS’s working president K.T. Rama Rao alleged a nexus between Revanth and Adani, “even as the Congress high command and leader Rahul Gandhi accused the tycoon of being utterly corrupt, an offender”.
A New York court has charged Adani and seven others, including his nephew Sagar, of promising Rs 2,029 crore in bribes to Indian government officials to obtain contracts.
“Delhi’s nod is needed for even a corporation post here. In such a scenario, should we believe Adani deals were done sans Congress leadership permission? Rahul Gandhi, who day in and day out lambasts Adani, should reveal if he approves (Telangana Congress government’s) deals with the group,” said KTR, son of former chief minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, at a press conference Friday.
KTR, the state’s former IT and industries minister, had alleged that while Revanth described Adani as a “big dacoit and looter” during the Maharashtra poll campaign, the industrialist had become “his friend” in Telangana.
The BRS leader, who claimed the Revanth government had Rs 12,400-crore industrial investment deals with the Adani Group, accused the ruling government of large-scale corruption, and sought to know “the size of commissions” to the big heads.
KTR demanded that the Congress government in Telangana cancel the Adani deals, and that Rahul should take action on “Adani dost Revanth” too. “Rahul Gandhi himself says that no one gives Rs 30 or 40 crores like this, so why did Adani give you a hundred crores, disclose this also once and we request … If Adani is not good for the country, as Rahul Gandhi says, then how will it be good for us?
#WATCH | BRS Working President KT Rama Rao says, "The man who is wrong in Maharashtra, whose investment is not right for Maharashtra, whose Dharavi project in Maharashtra is not right, then how he suddenly becomes good after crossing the border. How did an investment of crores… pic.twitter.com/W4WXfuIPLp
— ANI (@ANI) November 22, 2024
He added: “Rahul Gandhi can’t be running with the hair and hunting with the hound. He has to take a stand. If he’s clear in his mind that Adani is a fraud, then his government in Telangana needs to cancel all the MoUs.”
Don’t want controversies: Revanth
At a press conference in his residence just before he left for New Delhi Monday, Revanth Reddy said some people were falsely accusing his government of accepting funds from Adani.
He said the government’s decision to turn down the Rs 100 crore from the Adani Foundation, under its CSR, was in response to allegations on the group from within the country, neighbouring states, and overseas.
“The corpus fund Adani offered for the university is being projected as some benefit to me or my government. We have initiated the Skills University with the noble intention of providing skills and thereby jobs to lakhs of youth. As neither me nor my cabinet colleagues want such a project to run into unnecessary controversies, we have asked Adani Group to stop the fund transfer,” Revanth told reporters.
The foundation had last month committed Rs 100 crore to Telangana’s Young India Skills University, a public-private partnership. On 18 October, Gautam Adani met Revanth and reportedly handed him the intention statement.
Revanth’s office released a letter on 24 November, written by Jayesh Ranjan, special chief secretary, Industries & Commerce (I&C) Department, to Priti Adani, chairperson, Adani Foundation, saying he had instructed “not to seek transfer of funds in view of the present circumstances and arising controversies”.
Also read: As US SEC refers to Jagan in Adani complaint, why Naidu’s TDP hasn’t yet launched an offensive
‘BRS govt also signed deals with Adani’
Responding to KTR’s critique that Revanth had laid a red carpet for Adani, his office also released a list of Adani Group projects in Telangana Monday.
It said out of the 12 projects, five had been signed under the previous BRS government, five under Congress while the counter-drone manufacturing unit at Mamidipally and data centre complex at Mucherla were not yet approved by any government.
Meanwhile, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu has said he would take action if the US charges of bribery against his predecessor Jagan Mohan Reddy were true.
In its complaint filed in a US court, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has alleged that in 2021, Adani met with the Andhra Pradesh chief minister—a post then occupied by Jagan—and that “at or in connection with that meeting, paid or promised a bribe to Andhra Pradesh government officials” to enter into power supply agreements with the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI).
Shortly after this, Andhra Pradesh agreed to buy power from SECI, the complaint says. The DOJ indictment also refers to a Rs 1,750-crore bribe being offered to an unspecified Andhra Pradesh government official (‘Foreign Official #1’).
Speaking in the assembly Friday, Naidu had said the previous regime acted in a manner bringing “disrepute to Andhra Pradesh, and damaged the state’s brand image”.
(Edited by Tikli Basu)
Also read: Gautam Adani, nephew Sagar charged in US with bribery; Adani Group shares tumble