NACOF India Ltd. has served a defamation notice on BRS leader and former IPS officer RS Praveen Kumar over allegations concerning the Telangana Social Welfare Residential Educational Institutions Society tender for food provisions and cleaning materials, giving him seven days to withdraw the claims and issue a written apology.
The federation said the allegations were made by Praveen Kumar at a press conference on September 17 and were repeated in related videos and social media posts. According to the notice, he has been asked to remove the videos and posts, retract the allegations and publish the apology on the same platforms.
NACOF said it would initiate civil and criminal proceedings if Praveen Kumar did not comply within the seven-day period. The proposed action would include claims for damages and injunctive relief, the federation said. NACOF rejected the allegations made by Praveen Kumar and the BRS as baseless and incorrect.
The dispute relates to a tender for provisions and cleaning materials used in residential institutions and welfare hostels across Telangana. NACOF said it participated in an open, competitive e-procurement process notified on May 22, 2026, and was declared the lowest bidder, or L1, after evaluation of all bids.
The federation said it received a formal Letter of Award on August 19, 2026, and furnished the required performance security. It has since been supplying provisions and cleaning materials to residential institutions and welfare hostels in all 33 districts of Telangana under a rate contract, according to the notice.
NACOF also said that each stage of the tender process was documented and claimed that Praveen Kumar had not provided evidence to support his allegations. The notice, as reported by Deccan Chronicle, records NACOF’s version of the dispute; the report does not provide a response from Praveen Kumar or details of any separate official finding on the allegations.
The federation described itself as a multi-state cooperative registered under the Multi-State Cooperative Societies Act, 2002. It said the organisation is regulated by the Central Registrar of Cooperative Societies under the Union Ministry of Cooperation.
The immediate next step is the expiry of the seven-day period set out in NACOF’s notice. Any further legal action or formal response from Praveen Kumar would determine whether the dispute moves from a public allegation to proceedings before a civil or criminal forum.
