The Crime Investigation Department of Andhra Pradesh police on Thursday filed the chargesheet in the Amaravati Inner Ring Road case before the trial court in Vijayawada, against several accused including Telugu Desam Party president and former chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu.
The others who were charge-sheeted include: Naidu’s son Nara Lokesh, former minister Ponguru Narayana, Lingamaneni Rajashekar and Lingamaneni Ramesh.
According to the charge sheet, Naidu and Narayana falsely projected it to the government and the state cabinet that there was an Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of Singapore and the Government of Andhra Pradesh. But, there was no such G2G MoU and there was no required approval from the Government of India for such MoU.
Using the falsehood, they appointed a foreign Master planner (M/s Surbana Jurong) on nomination basis and paid them several crores of rupees in fee. This was illegal, in itself.
The master planner was utilised to prepare the designs for the master plans in such a manner as to have an Inner Ring Road and a Seed Development Area/ Start-up Area to the advantage of the accused.
The Inner Ring Road was designed in a manner as to pass just adjacent to the land bank of the Lingamanenis, Heritage Foods (in which Nara Chandrababu Naidu and his family members had controlling interests) and the educational institutions campuses belonging to the family members of Ponguru Narayana.
Narayana financed and purchased about 58 acres of land in the names of his relatives and in conspiracy with Naidu, the Seed Capital Area was designed just adjacent to these lands. They gave a commitment to spend Rs 5,500 crore from the public exchequer and to make it as the area to be developed first, before any other area in the capital city area.
As a quid-pro-quo for the windfall gains in the value appreciation of the land bank of about 340 acres, received by the Lingamanenis, they gifted a palatial house for the use of Naidu and his family members as a rent-free accommodation.
Heritage Foods had purchased about 14 acres of land adjacent to the land bank of the Lingamanenis. The Inner Ring Road was designed to lie just adjacent to these lands, with the need for a very minimal acquisition of land. It caused rapid appreciation in the value of the lands.
The offences were found to be punishable under sections 120(B), 409, 420, 34, 35, 36, 37 IPC and Sec.13(2) r/w 13(1)(c) & (d) of Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988, the charge sheet said.
