Hyderabad: Finance minister T. Harish Rao paid Rs 50 lakh as “fine” for a four-hour delay in attending a meeting.
This happened at Dubbak in Siddipet district on Friday. Of course, the fine was ‘paid’ from the government exchequer and not from his pocket.
Scheduled to participate in a loan distribution programme, under the Mission for Elimination of Poverty in Municipal Areas (MEPMA) initiative at 11.30 am, Mr Harish Ra arrived at at the venue only at 3.30 pm. Apparently, the minister was stuck in another programme at Siddipet.
On arrival, Mr Harish Rao asked the gathering to penalise him for not being punctual. Immedia-tely, women assembled on the occasion, sought sanction of funds for construction of a building for women.
Mr Harish Rao directed the officials over telephone to sanction `50 lakh for the construction of a building for women at Dubbak, thus ‘paying’ the penalty.
