Hyderabad: Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy on Monday, April 27, suggested that the ministers meet the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Director, if required, to facilitate a probe by the investigating agency into the alleged irregularities in the Kaleshwaram project executed during the previous Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) regime.
Reddy held a meeting with Irrigation Minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy and officials to discuss the government’s next course of action in the wake of Telangana High Court direction restraining action against former CM K Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR) and others based on the findings of the PC Ghose Commission.
The state government has decided to step up efforts to initiate a CBI probe into the alleged irregularities in the Kaleshwaram project, an official release said.
“The CM suggested to the ministers to take an appointment with the CBI Director, if need be, to submit a memorandum,” an official release said.
Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi attended the meeting via video conference, it said. The CM asked officials to dispatch a letter to the CBI seeking an immediate probe.
Legal experts said there are no hurdles for the CBI to take up an investigation, it said. The experts stated that the High Court did not find fault with the formation of the Ghose Commission or its report.
In a major relief to KCR and three others, the Telangana High Court on April 22 directed that no action be taken against them on the basis of findings of the PC Ghose Commission, which probed the alleged irregularities in the execution of the Kaleshwaram irrigation project.
The commission, headed by retired Supreme Court judge Justice PC Ghose, which had probed the alleged irregularities in the construction of the Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project during the BRS rule, had earlier submitted its report to the government.
The report was tabled in the state Assembly in August last year and after a discussion, Chief Minister Revanth Reddy had announced the government’s decision to hand over the investigation to the CBI.
The Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Project is a multi-purpose project on the Godavari river in Bhupalpally district. Damage to the barrages, built during the previous BRS regime, was a major issue during the 2023 Assembly election.
