Hyderabad: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Income Tax Department raided the home and offices of former Union minister and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) Rajya Sabha MP YS Chowdary. After the raids, a summons notice was issued for further investigation by the agencies.

The raids were conducted on Friday in eight locations including Hyderabad and New Delhi. Chowdary owns the Sujana group of companies. Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu has been called for questioning on November 27. The ED has claimed that the MP’s group of companies have cheated banks to the tune of Rs 5,700 crore.

The searches come just days after Naidu alleged publicly that the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Centre was misusing government agencies to target his party’s legislators. On November 8, the AP government also revoked its general consent given to the CBI to probe cases in the state.

The ED swung into action after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Bengaluru, registered three First Information Reports (FIR), based on complaints from three banks stating that the total loss caused to the consortium of banks to the tune of Rs 364 crore (Central Bank of India – Rs 133 crore, Andhra Bank – Rs 71 crore and Corporation Bank – Rs 159 crore) by M/s Best & Crompton Engineering Projects Ltd, Chennai (BCEPL), which had obtained loans from these banks by falsification of accounts and submission of false statements, said a press release.