Hyderabad, November 23, 2025 – Telangana Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy appears in no rush to pursue the arrest of Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) Working President K.T. Rama Rao (KTR) following the state Governor's recent approval for his prosecution in the high-profile Formula E race funding scandal, political observers and party insiders indicate. The development has intensified the ongoing feud between the Congress-led government and the opposition BRS, with KTR daring authorities to act while accusing Reddy of orchestrating a larger land grab scheme.
The Formula E case stems from allegations of financial irregularities during the BRS regime, when KTR served as Minister for Municipal Administration and Urban Development. The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) claims that approximately Rs 55 crore in public funds was misappropriated to host the electric car racing event in Hyderabad in 2023, including payments to a Singapore-based promoter without proper tenders or approvals. An FIR was filed against KTR, former Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation Commissioner A.V. Ranganath, and others in late 2024, prompting multiple questioning sessions by the ACB and the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
On November 20, 2025, Governor Jishnu Dev Varma granted sanction for KTR's prosecution, a procedural nod required due to his status as a sitting MLA. This clears the path for the ACB to file a chargesheet and potentially seek arrest, but sources close to the Chief Minister's Office suggest no immediate action is planned. "The government is focused on building a watertight case rather than hasty moves that could backfire politically," one senior Congress leader told reporters, speaking anonymously.
Reddy's measured approach contrasts with his earlier criticisms of delays in the process. In early November, he publicly accused the Raj Bhavan of stalling the file for two months, linking it to an alleged "Fevicol bond" between the BRS and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). During a campaign rally for the Jubilee Hills bypoll on November 5, Reddy urged Union Minister G. Kishan Reddy to expedite arrests in corruption cases, including KTR's, lamenting that "nothing has moved" despite submissions to the Governor. However, with the sanction now in hand, the CM's silence on next steps has fueled speculation of a strategic pause.
KTR, undeterred, has repeatedly taunted Reddy over the issue. "Revanth Reddy knows fully well that there is nothing in the Formula E race case and that he might not venture to arrest me," the BRS leader stated on November 21, dismissing the probe as a politically motivated witch hunt. He reiterated his innocence, claiming he had appeared before the ACB four times and answered all queries, and challenged Reddy to join him for a lie-detector test—referencing the CM's own past ACB case in the 2015 cash-for-votes scam, from which Reddy was later cleared.
Escalating the rhetoric, KTR alleged that Reddy's government is engineering a massive Rs 5 lakh crore scam through the Hyderabad Integrated Land Titling and Property (HILTP) policy, which he branded an "ATM for real estate lobbies." "Arrest me if you have the guts," KTR declared earlier this month after Reddy's remarks on the Formula E event, accusing the Congress of diverting attention from its own failures ahead of the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) polls. BRS supporters have rallied online, with hashtags like #JusticeForKTR trending on X, framing the case as vendetta politics.
Political analysts attribute Reddy's apparent reluctance to broader electoral calculations. An arrest at this juncture could garner sympathy for KTR and the BRS, especially with K. Chandrashekar Rao (KCR), the party's ailing founder, sidelined by health issues. "Reddy is playing the long game—letting the legal process unfold without handing the opposition a martyrdom narrative," said Hyderabad-based commentator Prof. K. Nageshwar. The timing also overlaps with scrutiny over the Congress's handling of other BRS-era scams, like the Kaleshwaram irrigation project, where probes have similarly dragged on.
As the ACB prepares its chargesheet, the standoff underscores deepening divisions in Telangana's polarized political landscape. With local body elections looming, both camps are weaponizing the issue: Congress touts anti-corruption credentials, while BRS cries foul over selective targeting. For now, the distance between KTR and any handcuffs remains comfortably wide, much to the relief of his supporters and the calculated calm of the ruling dispensation.
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