BRS demands indepth probe into discrepancies in RTC contract

The BRS leader suspected that the RTC clarification was an attempt to shield the Transport Minister by stating that neither the State government nor the Transport Minister had any role in the process.

Hyderabad: The Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) on Tuesday pointed out discrepancies and norm violations by the State government in awarding a major contract under the Mahalaxmi scheme.

The party demanded transparency and a thorough review of the documents related to the contract. Speaking to mediapersons at Telangana Bhavan here, BRS leader Krishank Manne stated that after the BRS exposed the RTC ticketing corruption, the State government admitted to have awarded the Automatic Fare Collection System contract to Chalo Mobility without proper tender procedures for 13,200 iTiMs (Intelligent Ticket Issuing Machines).

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“The explanation from TGSRTC management shows evident corruption and favoritism towards a particular company. There is a clear attempt to cover up these wrongdoings,” he said.

However, he pointed out that there were several discrepancies and norm violations involving Transport Minister Ponnam Prabhakar which remained unanswered.

“The Letter of Intent indicates that the government’s committee negotiated on March 4, while the RTC statement claims the previous tender was canceled on February 29. How could the TSRTC delegation conclude their study and award the contract in just three days?” he asked.

Krishank sought to know the members of this delegation, and which States did they tour, to make such a significant decision so quickly. He asked whether Chalo Mobility participated in the bidding.

“Why were global tenders not called for if no company met the requirements? Why was Telangana State Technogical Services (TSTS) not utilised for this significant contract?” he asked.

The BRS leader suspected that the RTC clarification was an attempt to shield the Transport Minister by stating that neither the State government nor the Transport Minister had any role in the process.

“TSRTC is a corporation merged into the State government, with Finance department bureaucrats on its Board of Directors. Claiming that the State government or Transport Minister is unrelated raises further suspicion,” he added.

He also highlighted the misuse of the Mahalaxmi scheme, which functions with taxpayer money.

“The government cannot use the Mahalaxmi scheme as a cover to benefit a particular company. Neighboring Karnataka conducted a transparent tender process for a similar scheme using their e-governance portal. Why wasn’t this approach considered?” he asked.

Krishank urged the State government to allow a BRS delegation to review the Note Sheet/File of Contract, bidders’ quotations, High Level Committee Reports, and other related documents to expose the corruption.