Well-known industrialist and Kerala Blasters FC co-owner Nimmagadda Prasad was reportedly arrested in Belgrade by Serbia Police. Media reports said the arrest was in connection with the Vodarevu-Nizampatnam Port and Industrial Corridor (Vanpic) project case.
He was arrested after UAE's Ras Al Khaima, which is a partner in the project, lodged a complaint claiming fraudulent activities on behalf of the businessman.
Prasad, who was on a vacation in Serbia, has close connections with Andhra Pradesh chief minister YSR Jaganmohan Reddy. He was earlier arrested and spent two years in connection with the same case. Reddy is also an accused in the Vanpic case, which is currently in court.
Earlier, the Andhra government had allotted 24,000 acres of land for the project, a joint venture between Prasad and Ras Al Khaimah. The Telugu Desam Party (TDP), after it came to power in 2014, cancelled the project and Enforcement Directorate (ED) attached the land allotted to it. This resulted in heavy losses for Ras Al Khaimah.
According to reports, the YSR Congress Party government is trying to bring back Prasad from Serbia with the help of the central government. A letter in that regard was sent to the Foreign Minister, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar to talk with the Serbian government.
Prasad is currently a co-owner of the Kerala Blasters FC along with film stars Chiranjeevi, Akkineni Nagarjuna and film producer Allu Aravind. They finished ninth on the points table in the 2018-19 season with 15 points from 18 matches.
