KCR questioned by CBI

Hyderabad, Oct 21: TRS supremo and Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao was questioned by Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officials yesterday. A special team of CBI officials examined KCR at his residence in Hyderabad in a case relating to the award of a contract when he was the Union Labour Minister in 2006. According to reports, CBI officials questioned KCR why he cancelled the proposal to award a contract to NBCC, a Central agency, and awarded it to Executive Engineer of AP Fisheries Department. The contract was for the construction of ESI Hospitals across the state. ESI initiated the probe on substandard quality of work and on the basis of its report, CBI's Anti-Corruption Branch registered a case in 2011. According to reports, experts from IITs said that substandard works had resulted in a loss of at least Rs 5 crore. It is said that Suryanarayana, Executive Engineer of Engineering Wing of Andhra Pradesh Fisheries Department was named in the FIR. The CBI sleuths also questioned two IAS offices RI Singh and Pepper Singh and the then private secretary of KCR. On the basis of statements given by them, CBI decided to question KCR. The agency has raised strong objection to why the contract was awarded to State's department by overlooking two Central agencies NBCC and Public Works Department.