The scam in ‘Satyam’, which has made news world wide as the biggest in Indian corporate history, is now a ‘trump card’ for three major political opponents in Andhra Pradesh, Congress, Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Praja Rajyam Party (PRP). The mutual mud-slinging is wide-spread among these parties since the scam has come to the spotlight. Since it is hardly 3 months for the general elections in the state, each of the the trio want to squeeze out maximum benefit of this fiasco.

The Chandra Babu Naidu, the chief of TDP, was once renowned world wide as ‘Hi-tech’ CM of Andhra Pradesh is portrayed as one of the ‘chief benefactor’ of the scam in the Satyam. Though Congress doesn’t claim this directly, the representatives of the party have alleged that Mr.Naidu has not just given excess ‘support’, but also culprit in most of the ‘gains’ in the money laundering. The plenory of Congress party is busy campaigning by especially using the pictures of Mr.Naidu with the ex-CEO of Satyam, Ramalinga Raju with Bill Clinton, to convey a message to the electorate that it was the TDP who was responsible for the Satyam. 

   The present party in the power, Congress seems equally ‘uncomfortable’ with these events, since the MAYTAS has been offered a principle share in the contracts, the significant being the Hyderabad Metro and IIIT campus construction. Moreover, during the Congress Government for the past four years, 108 services which has won wide appreciation and accolades, and started under the banner of ‘Rajiv Aarogya Shree’, was a collaborative effort of Byrraju Foundation, Satyam Computer Services Ltd., and the ministry of Primary Health, Andhra Pradesh. The allegations from the oppositions include that there has been investments from Mr.Raju into the newspaper daily, ‘Saakshi’, started by the son of YS Rajasekhara Reddy, Mr.Y.Jaganmohan Reddy. 

It is ironic to see that these comments from the leaders who once generously praised Ramalinga Raju as the ‘Andhrite of the year’, and tried to ‘own’ the IT revolution, as their own party’s contribution to the state.