TDP worker stages protest inside plane in Visakhapatnam Airport against Naidu’s arrest; detained

Visakhapatnam (Andhra Pradesh) [India], September 13 (ANI): A Telugu Desam Party worker staged a protest inside a Visakhapatnam- bound flight against the arrest of party chief and former chief minister Chandrababu Naidu

The TDP worker Adari Kishore Kumar staged a protest inside the plane at the Visakhapatnam airport on Tuesday.

In a purported video that surfaced on social media, Kumar can be seen inside an aircraft holding a ‘Save Democracy’ banner.

He was detained by the police at the airport.

Chandrababu Naidu was sent to judicial custody on Sunday for 14 days, till September 23, by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) court in Vijayawada in connection with an alleged Skill Development Corporation scam.

Earlier, TDP workers held a protest on Monday in Chittoor against the arrest and judicial custody of the TDP chief in the alleged skill development case.

The TDP has called for a bandh across the state. The Andhra Pradesh police have enforced Section 144 across the state.

On Monday State Police also tried to detain several party leaders including TDP MLC Kancherla Srikanth in Chittoor district as a preventive action to maintain law and order in the state.

Protests were also held in Tirupati and West Godavari districts against the arrest and judicial custody of Chandrababu Naidu.

The case in which Naidu is arrested pertains to the establishment of clusters of Centers of Excellence (CoEs) in the state of Andhra Pradesh, with a total estimated project value of Rs 3300 crore, as per the officials.

The agency officials also claimed that the alleged fraud has caused a huge loss to the state government in excess of Rs 300 crore.

As per the CID, the investigation has revealed serious irregularities such as before any expenditure by private entities, the then state government provided an advance of Rs 371 crores, representing the entire 10 per cent commitment by the government.

Most of the money advanced by the government was diverted to shell companies through fake invoices, with no actual delivery or sale of the items mentioned in the invoices, CID officials said.

In its remand report, the CID has said that according to the investigation so far, the total amount spent by private entities on six skill development clusters is sourced exclusively from funds advanced by the Government of Andhra Pradesh and the Andhra Pradesh Skill Development Centre, totalling Rs 371 crore.