The Telangana Police's Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has filed a charge sheet in a special court in connection with the alleged misappropriation of funds related to the Formula E race held in Hyderabad in 2023.
The charge sheet names Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) working president and former minister K T Rama Rao as the primary accused, along with senior IAS officer Arvind Kumar, former Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) chief engineer B L N Reddy, sports consultant Kiran Malleswar Rao, and UK-based Formula E Operations (FEO).
The ACB registered an FIR on December 19, 2024, under sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act, besides Section 409 (criminal breach of trust) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), for the alleged financial irregularities of ₹54.88 crore in conducting the Formula E racing in Hyderabad.
The FIR stated that a tripartite agreement was signed on October 25, 2022, between Formula E Operations (UK), Ace Nxt Gen (a subsidiary of Greenko Group), and the municipal administration and urban development (MA&UD) department, to conduct Formula E races for Seasons 9, 10, 11, and 12 in Hyderabad.
However, the sponsor, Ace Nxt Gen, backed out from conducting the racing event for Season 10 due to some differences with the FEO. Following discussions, it was decided to make HMDA as the promoter and host of the event and pay the fee.
The HMDA released ₹54.88 crore, including ₹110 crore payment to the FEO, without obtaining formal approvals from the relevant regulatory authorities, resulting in an additional tax burden of ₹8.06 crore.
The ACB authorities noted that the payments to the FEO were made much before the new agreement was signed with the government as the promoter and host, without prior approval from the Election Commission of India.
