Congress leader alleges ₹1,000 crore scam in MoU with Byju’s, demands probe

The YSRCP government had singed a pact with the education tech company without studying the efficacy of its app, alleges Kolanukonda Shivaji; the previous government had purchased tablets for distribution among Class 8 students at a rate higher than the MRP, he alleges

Andhra Pradesh Congress Committee (APCC) vice-president Kolanukonda Shivaji on October 29 (Tuesday) alleged misappropriation of funds to the tune of ₹1,000 crore in the MoU signed between the previous YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) government and education tech company Byju’s.

In a statement, Mr. Shivaji urged Minister for Human Resources Development (HRD) N. Lokesh to order a high-level probe into the deal and bring facts to light.

He said former Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy had claimed that the pact with Byju’s would facilitate imparting quality education to the students of government schools. The MoU had been signed without studying the efficacy of the app and without taking anyone into confidence, he alleged. “Nobody knows if children benefited or not,” he said.

Similar was the situation with the tablets distributed to the students of Class 8 by Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy on his 50th birthday, Mr. Shivaji said. Alleging that the government had purchased the tabs at rates higher than the MRP, he said while the difference in the cost was ₹5,000 in the first year, it was ₹8,000 in the second year.

He said as many as 9.5 lakh students were given tabs free of cost. In the first year, 5,20,000 students received the tabs against 4,35,000 students in the second year. The MRP for the tablets purchased in the first year was ₹13,000, while in the second year, it was ₹17,500.

While representative of Byju’s had claimed that they were providing content free of cost to 3.2 million people in Andhra Pradesh, Mr. Jagan Mohan Reddy’s government said it had purchased it for ₹778 crore. “People need to know what is the actual truth,” Mr. Shivaji said.

Published - October 29, 2024 06:41 pm IST