Major Relief for AB Venkateswara Rao in High Court: ACB Case Quashed

Retired Indian Police Service officer and former head of the Andhra Pradesh Intelligence Department, AB Venkateswara Rao, received significant relief from the Andhra Pradesh High Court on Wednesday. The court struck down the case filed against him by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) and the chargesheet submitted in the Vijayawada ACB Court. The High Court clarified that the allegations made by the ACB lacked sufficient evidence.

The ACB had filed the case in March 2021, during the previous YSR Congress Party-led government, alleging irregularities in the tendering process for the procurement of security and surveillance equipment. In response, AB Venkateswara Rao approached the High Court in 2022 seeking the dismissal of the case. Justice N. Harinath delivered the final verdict on Wednesday.

In the judgment, the court noted that the allegations brought by the ACB did not hold up to legal scrutiny, were vague and unsubstantiated, and did not stand under the purview of law. As a result, the High Court declared that AB Venkateswara Rao was not required to face trial in the lower court.

During the final hearing, senior advocate B. Adinarayana Rao represented AB Venkateswara Rao. He argued that it was the then Director General of Police who initiated the equipment procurement process and constituted the purchase and technical committees. AB Venkateswara Rao had merely recommended names of senior officials for these committees. There was no evidence that he misused his official position to influence the decisions of these committees.

The lawyer further stated that not a single rupee had been spent on the procurement, and therefore, the question of deriving undue benefit did not arise. He also informed the court that the Israeli company which secured the tender had no connection with “Aakash Advanced Systems,” a company owned by AB Venkateswara Rao’s son. This clarification had been confirmed by the Israeli company itself. The advocate emphasized that the petitioner's actions did not cause any loss to the government, and the tender was eventually cancelled by the then Director General of Police.

He concluded that the sections invoked by the ACB were not applicable in this case, and therefore, the case should be quashed. Agreeing with these arguments, the judge dismissed both the case and the chargesheet filed against AB Venkateswara Rao.