The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) Court in Vijayawada has approved the Crime Investigation Department's (CID) request to close the investigation against Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu in the skill development “scam” case. Naidu, along with several others, had been named as accused in the case.
The CID had filed a petition seeking to wind up the case, which the court formally accepted. This effectively gives Chandrababu Naidu a clean chit in the high-profile case.
The ruling has drawn strong reactions from the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP). State General Secretary SV Satish Reddy described the development as shocking and said it reflected a “misuse of power”. He also called it a setback for democracy and added that the party plans to challenge the decision through legal channels.
“The closure of the Skill Development case against Chandrababu Naidu is a shocking misuse of power and a direct blow to democracy. When ordinary citizens are jailed for minor offences, how can those accused of siphoning hundreds of crores of public money walk free? This case involved SIT findings, ED probes, arrests, attachment of properties, and even Chandrababu Naidu’s own arrest. Branding such a case as a “mistake of fact” is not justice, but institutional surrender. After assigned lands, FiberNet, liquor, sand, and mining cases were quietly buried, the Skill case has now met the same fate. Such actions destroy accountability and send a dangerous message that power stands above the law. He said YSR Congress Party will continue its legal and democratic fight to protect institutions and uphold the rule of law,” he said in a video message on X.
About the case
Naidu faced charges over the alleged misappropriation of funds from the APSSDC, which reportedly caused a loss of more than Rs 300 crore to the state exchequer. He spent over 50 days in Rajamahendravaram Central Prison before the Andhra Pradesh High Court granted him bail on October 31, 2023.
According to Andhra Pradesh Advocate General Dammalapati Srinivas, the investigating agency found no evidence of the Chief Minister’s involvement and submitted a memo to the court, which was accepted by the judicial officer.
