A prominent infrastructure firm that allegedly paid bribes amounting to ₹118 crore to Telugu Desam Party president and Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu in 2018 has reportedly bagged the contract for constructing the iconic Secretariat tower in Amaravati.
This revelation was made by a whistleblower and has since been reported by several digital media platforms.
Adding to the controversy, the firm in question — Shapoorji Pallonji and Company Pvt. Ltd. — was blacklisted by the Airports Authority of India (AAI) as recently as August 22, 2024, over alleged irregularities in the construction of Leh Airport.
“The company was barred from receiving any government contracts until August 22, 2026. However, the Central government surprisingly lifted the ban and removed it from the blacklist just days before it won the tender for the Amaravati Secretariat project,” sources revealed.
Notably, the Income Tax Department had issued a show-cause notice to Naidu two years ago, accusing him of receiving ₹118 crore in kickbacks from Shapoorji Pallonji in 2018–19 in exchange for awarding them contracts worth thousands of crores.
The IT notice stated that the funds were disguised under the code name "steel in tonnes" and asked why proceedings should not be initiated against Naidu for possessing “undisclosed income” of ₹118 crore.
This investigation began after raids were conducted on the premises of Manoj Vasudev Pardasany (MVP), who had been actively involved in Andhra Pradesh's tendering process on behalf of Shapoorji Pallonji & Co. Pvt. Ltd. (SPCL).
Although Naidu reportedly responded to the IT notice, there has been no public update on the outcome. Interestingly, not long after this, the TDP formed an alliance with the BJP and Jana Sena Party for the Andhra Pradesh elections.
Sources say the case is still ongoing and has not been officially closed. While Naidu had distanced himself from Shapoorji Pallonji after returning to power in June 2014, the company is now back in the picture and set to secure a multi-crore contract for the Secretariat tower.
In a curious twist, Jeevan Lal, the Income Tax Commissioner (Exemptions) who spearheaded the investigation into the alleged kickbacks, was recently arrested by the CBI on bribery charges. Reports suggest that a representative of Shapoorji Pallonji was also arrested in the same case.
So in the end, as some would say — it's all part of the game!
