According to these reports, KCR is learnt to have finalised the name of Parthasaradhi Reddy, the owner of pharma major Hetero Drugs, a close associate of YSR Congress party president Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy.
Parthasaradhi Reddy is learnt to have met the chief minister a few days back and lobbied for the RS ticket. Though he hails from Andhra Pradesh, he had become closer to the power centre in Telangana, by virtue of his pharma industry in the state.
Parthasaradhi Reddy was one of the accused in the quid pro quo case involving Jagan, being probed by the CBI since 2012.
The CBI, in its charge sheet filed in the court, charged Parthasarathy Reddy with investing in Jagan’s companies in return to the favours granted by the AP government during Y S Rajasekhar Reddy regime.
After Jagan came to power in 2019, he granted a contract of developing over 400 schools to Parthasarathy Reddy under Nadu-Nedu scheme, besides also making him a member of the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams trust board.
In October 2021, the Income Tax department raided the offices and residences of Parthasaradhi Reddy on a tip off about large scale evasion of income tax over the few years.
The IT authorities seized unaccounted cash worth Rs 145 crore, besides identifying income of another Rs 550 crore which was not shown in the accounts.
Apparently, Parthasaradhi Reddy might have thought the best way to overcome these financial troubles is to join politics and become an MP.
The name of KCR’s close aide Divakonda Damodar Rao, chairman and managing director of Namaste Telangana daily, is also being heard as one of the candidates for the Rajya Sabha nomination.
