ACB court serves summons on TN governor K Rosaiah

HYDERABAD: An anti-corruption bureau ( ACB) court in Hyderabad served summons on the Tamil Nadu governor K. Rosaiah to appear before it in connection with alleged favours he doled out to certain private parties, a rare development involving a person occupying a constitutional post.

The court has on Monday served notices on Rosaiah, former chief minister of Andhra Pradesh, to appear before it on 2 August in a probe pertaining to de-notifying over 9 acres of prime land at Ameerpet in Hyderabad, valued at around Rs 300 crore.

Interestingly, the state's ACB had earlier conducted an enquiry into the alleged favours doled out by Rosaiah, when he was chief minister, and filed a report in the court absolving him of the charges levelled against him.

The bureau, which probed into the matter following a petition filed by one Mohan Lal in the ACB court, said it did not find any material evidence to show that there was "misappropriation, cheating, abetment or any collusion or conspiracy on the part of K. Rosaiah with the other accused."

The court, which had rejected the ACB report following a protest petition by Mohan Lal, has recently directed further probe into the matter. "The decision to serve notices on the Tamil Nadu Governor is part of these directives by the court," said an ACB official, who did not want to be named.

Earlier in December 2010, the court had directed the bureau to resister cases against the former chief minister and 14 other accused in the case under the provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act, while admitting the petition of Mohan Lal, who is an advocate.

The court has recently recorded the statements of the senior bureaucrats who served the chief minister's office and municipal administration and urban development ministry when the alleged favours took place, causing a loss of over Rs 300 crore to the state exchequer.