AP Fibernet, the company under which APSFL is near bankruptcy under the current YSRCP government according to the chairman GV Reddy. Addressing the media conference at Amaravati he alleged that director Ram Gopal Varma (RGV) was paid Rs. 2.10 crore illegally during the previous administration.
GV Reddy gave an account of the history of AP Fibernet, which was incepted in 2016 by then Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu with the objective to provide internet services at affordable rates to the rural villages, especially targeting low and middle-income groups. By 2019, the project laid 24,000 km cable and established 10 lakhs connections. However, the number of connections declined to 5 lakhs under the present management.
A vigilance investigation is underway to probe corruption in AP Fibernet. Reddy accused the previous government of harassing cable operators and promised to scrutinize the irregularities allegedly committed by former MD Madhusudhan. He claimed that key files were manipulated to shield YSRCP leaders from accountability.
In one such case, a woman employee allegedly passed the crucial documents to YSRCP MP Vijayasai Reddy and was terminated from her role. GV Reddy promised to cut down on unnecessary expenditures and planned to take measures for raising the funds for revival.
GV Reddy brought to light the discrepancies in the payment that had occurred due to the telecast of the movie Vyuham through Fibernet. According to him, the film got a viewing of just 1,863 viewers. Even at the exaggerated price of Rs. 100 per view, the amount that would have been payable must have been Rs. 1.83 lakh or at the most Rs. 2 lakh. An unbelievable Rs. 2.10 crore was paid, that means almost Rs. 11,000 per view.
“This payment was completely unjustifiable. We have all the records of these transactions and will ensure appropriate action is taken,” said GV Reddy, concluding his remarks.
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