Telangana: ED attaches Rs 80 crore worth assets of Nama Nageswara Rao

HYDERABAD: The Enforcement Directorate on Monday attached 28 immovable properties and other assets worth Rs 80 crore belonging to TRS MP and party floor leader in Lok Sabha, Nama Nageswara Rao, and members of his family.
The ED's attachment of assets is in connection with a money laundering case against Madhucon Projects Limited, Ranchi Expressway Limited, and its directors and promoters under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
The TRS MP is a promoter and director of Madhucon group of companies and a personal guarantor for a huge bank loan, which the company defaulted.
ED also attached the registered office of Madhucon group of companies and residential property of the accused in Jubilee Hills.
The attached properties include immovable assets worth Rs 67 crore in Hyderabad, Khammam, and Prakasam district; movable assets are worth Rs 13.6 crore, including shares held by Nageswara Rao and his family members in Madhucon group of companies.
In July this year, ED provisionally attached 105 immovable properties and other assets worth Rs 73 crore belonging to Madhucon group of companies and its directors and promoters. Assets of Nageswara Rao and other promoters and directors were attached also.
ED found Madhucon group promoters siphoned off loans by taking entire engineering, procurement, and construction contract from special purpose vehicle and availing huge mobilization and material advances. Promoters used funds in their other projects, ED charged. Accused also generated direct cash of Rs 75.5 crore and then got back the amount through six shell entities, ED stated.
Shell companies were Usha Projects, Shree BR Visions, Shree Dharma Sastha Constructions, Sree Nagendra Constructions, Ragini Infrastructure, and Varalakshmi Constructions. All were under the control of chairman Nama Nageswara Rao and promoter Nama Seethaiah, ED said. Sub-contractors were based in AP and Telangana, whereas project was in north India, ED stated.
ED said they took large advances from Madhucon Projects Ltd from bank loan funds and then paid back huge amounts to the group on pretext of using its equipment and labour. ED identified direct diversion of Rs 361 crore from bank loan got by Ranchi Expressway Ltd.