YS Chowdary’s office and residence have been raided by officials from the Income Tax department (IT) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to investigate allegations of money laundering and financial irregularities.
The Officials of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted a two-day raid at the residence and offices of former Union minister and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) legislator YS Chowdary in Hyderabad and Delhi on Friday and Saturday to probe into allegations of money laundering and other financial irregularities to the tune of Rs 5,700 Cr.
YS Chowdary, a member of the Rajya Sabha, is said to be a close aide of Telugu Desam Party (TDP) President and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu. Last month, the raids were conducted on Telugu Desam Party leader and RS MP CM Ramesh too. He too is a close aide of CM Chandrababu Naidu.
YS Chowdary, who owns Sujana Group of companies, was Minister of Science and Technology in Narendra Modi Cabinet till March when the Telugu Desam Party pulled out of the BJP-led NDA government at the Centre.
According to Enforcement Directorate, the searches conducted at 7 locations in Hyderabad and one in Delhi revealed that the banks have been defrauded by companies owned by YS Chowdary to the tune of over Rs 5,700 Cr. The ED officials checked all the records, computers and the laptops at the offices of the Sujana Group owned by YS Chowdary.
Preliminary investigations indicate that certain loans to group companies were sanctioned against the personal guarantee of YS Chowdary.
The ED seized 6 luxury cars including Range Rover, Ferrari, and Benz from Y S Chowdary’s residence.
Authorities summoned YS Chowdary to appear before them on 27th November for further investigation.
CBI had registered 3 cases based on complaints from 3 banks stating that one company, Chennai-based Best & Crompton Engineering Projects Ltd, had obtained loans from them by falsifying accounts and submitting the false statements, causing them a cumulative loss of Rs 364 Cr. It included a loss of Rs 133 Cr to Central Bank of India, Rs 71 Cr to Andhra Bank and Rs 159 Cr to Corporation Bank.