Hyderabad:
Allegations of corruption and favouritism in the tender process for Hyderabad's Radial Road-2 project have triggered a political storm in Telangana. The main Opposition party, Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), and Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) president K Kavitha have accused the Congress government of demanding commissions and interfering in public contracts.
Kavitha alleged a 15 per cent commission demand and threats from the Chief Minister's Office (CMO). "Shameless favouritism for cronies!" she said.
The state government and the authorities concerned have not responded to the allegations.
The controversy follows allegations by Nama Ramesh, managing director of RVM Constructions India Limited, who questioned the evaluation of bids for Radial Road-2. He claimed the bids were significantly lower than those of the firms declared lowest bidders, and could have saved the state hundreds of crores of rupees. He alleged a difference of about Rs 600 crore across the project packages. "Cancel it and call for a re-tender," Ramesh said. He also raised concerns over delays in clearing contractors' bills and questioned why payments were not being released in sequence.
The BRS has separately targeted Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy over the allegations, questioning whether infrastructure contracts were being awarded on merit or through commission arrangements. "Strike a 15 per cent commission deal. Secure contracts worth billions," the party said, citing a letter reportedly submitted by contractors to the Builders Association of India (BAI).
Accusing the government of misusing its authority, Kavitha alleged, "The Congress government has turned the Chief Minister's Office into a mafia-style collection centre. This isn't governance. It is blatant extortion... Telangana will not tolerate this loot. Every single perpetrator will be held accountable!"