Published Feb 01, 2026 | 8:42 PM ⚊ Updated Feb 01, 2026 | 8:42 PM
The complaint effectively clears the TDP chief of all charges in the case.
Synopsis: The Enforcement Directorate has filed a supplementary chargesheet in the Andhra Pradesh State Skill Development Corporation–Siemens project case without naming Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu as an accused, shifting the focus to alleged diversion of public funds by private firms and individuals. Naidu had been arrested by the state CID in September 2023 as the main accused in the case, but a Vijayawada court later accepted a closure report citing lack of evidence.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed a supplementary prosecution complaint in the Andhra Pradesh State Skill Development Corporation (APSSDC)–Siemens project case without naming Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu as an accused.
In a statement issued on Saturday, January 31, the agency’s Hyderabad Zonal Office said it had submitted the supplementary complaint before the Special PMLA Court in Visakhapatnam. The court took cognisance of it on January 28, 2026.
The complaint effectively clears the TDP chief of all charges in the case and focuses instead on the diversion of government funds by several private entities and individuals involved in the public-private partnership (PPP) project.
Months before the 2024 Assembly elections in the state, on 9 September 2023, Naidu—then Leader of the Opposition—was arrested by the Andhra Pradesh Crime Investigation Department (CID) in a high-profile early-morning operation.
At the time, he was named as the key accused in the alleged misappropriation and laundering of funds earmarked for the establishment of skilling centres.
The alleged scam was estimated at ₹330 crore. He spent 53 days in Rajamahendravaram Central Prison before securing bail from the Andhra Pradesh High Court on 31 October 2023.
In April 2024, the CID filed a chargesheet against Naidu and others before a special ACB court in Vijayawada.
The situation shifted after the TDP-led NDA coalition returned to power in Andhra Pradesh following the 2024 Assembly elections, with Naidu resuming office as Chief Minister.
In December last year, a Vijayawada court accepted a closure report filed by the state CID, ending the investigation against Naidu and 36 others for lack of evidence.
The supplementary complaint names M/s Designtech Systems Private Limited (DTSPL) and its Managing Director, Vikas Vinayak Khanvelkar, along with Suman Bose alias Soumyadri Sekhar Bose, Mukul Chandra Agarwal, Suresh Goyal, and others.
The allegations relate to financial irregularities in the APSSDC–Siemens project, launched to promote skill development and entrepreneurship in Andhra Pradesh.
The ED’s probe grew out of a First Information Report (FIR) registered by the CID, which accused DTSPL and others of cheating the state government by diverting and siphoning off public funds allocated to the Siemens skill development project.
On the basis of the CID’s findings, the ED launched an investigation under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) to examine the alleged laundering of government funds through a complex web of financial transactions.
The ED said its investigation found that Vikas Khanvelkar, Managing Director of DTSPL, along with Suman Bose—former Managing Director of Siemens Industry Software India Pvt Ltd—and their close associates Mukul Chandra Agarwal and Suresh Goyal, allegedly diverted government funds through shell and defunct companies.
According to the agency, the funds were routed through multi-layered transactions and siphoned off using bogus invoices raised under the pretext of supplying materials and services. The ED said “entry providers” were used to facilitate the diversion, and commissions were paid to them for layering and laundering the proceeds of crime.
During the investigation, the ED arrested Khanvelkar, Bose, Agarwal, and Goyal on March 4, 2023. In April 2023, it attached fixed deposits worth ₹31.20 crore held in the name of DTSPL.
The agency later filed a prosecution complaint before the Special PMLA Court in Visakhapatnam, which took cognisance of the case in May 2023.
Further investigation led the ED to identify additional proceeds of crime held by other individuals, including the alleged entry providers. As part of this phase, the agency attached properties and assets worth ₹23.54 crore, including bank balances, shares, and immovable properties in Delhi NCR, Mumbai, and Pune.
With this, the total value of assets attached in the APSSDC–Siemens project case has risen to ₹54.74 crore, the ED said.
Based on the additional evidence and financial trail uncovered during the extended probe, the ED filed the supplementary prosecution complaint before the Special PMLA Court.
(Edited by Dese Gowda)
