Czech Government Seeks €208 Million from Babiš’s Agricultural Conglomerate
The Czech government is demanding that the business owned by former Prime Minister Andrzej Babiš return more than €200 million in farm subsidy payments, raising the stakes ahead of a national vote in October, reports 24brussels.
Agriculture Minister Marek Výborný announced for the first time that the Agrofert conglomerate should repay 5.1 billion koruny (€208 million) — of which 4.24 billion koruny were EU direct payments, while the remaining 860 million koruny consists of national subsidies.
This demand follows a series of court defeats for Agrofert concerning subsidies received during Babiš’s tenure as Prime Minister from 2017 to 2021. Despite placing Agrofert into two trusts, the courts determined that Babiš continued to exert control over the business, thus disqualifying it from receiving the subsidies. “Based on the facts known to me and the Supreme Administrative Court’s decision, which was confirmed by the Constitutional Court at the end of April, we are moving forward with proceedings to reclaim payments made during that period to companies ultimately owned by Andrej Babiš,” said Výborný.
Babiš has accused the center-right government, facing a potential defeat in the upcoming October 3-4 polls, of pursuing a political vendetta. “Minister Výborný has been abusing his position and officials for political battles and only wants to gain visibility before the elections. The whole coalition is obsessed with Babiš and Agrofert,” he stated.
Despite the controversies, Babiš’s populist ANO party remains an election front-runner with support reaching 33 percent this week, even amid a dog-slaying hitman scandal affecting his party. Babiš campaigns with messaging associated with the far right and has vowed to scrap ammunition deliveries to Ukraine — though he has yet to unveil an official election program.
His main opponent, the Spolu coalition, composed of three out of four governing parties, lags behind at 20 percent. This coalition’s ratings have dipped due to unpopular decisions, such as pension reform, inadequate communication, and internal friction, compounded by high inflation and energy costs.
In a related ruling, Prague’s High Court has overturned a prior decision that had cleared Babiš of wrongdoing in a €2 million EU subsidy fraud case. This case is now under review by the same District Court that had previously acquitted Babiš and his former adviser — now a Member of the European Parliament — Jana Nagyová, for manipulating ownership documents to qualify for subsidies. The High Court decreed that the lower court had not properly assessed the evidence and must adhere to its legal opinion moving forward.
This implies that the lower court cannot acquit Babiš unless new evidence emerges. Should he regain power following the elections, the court would need to request that the newly elected deputies waive his immunity.
Both Babiš and Nagyová have consistently pleaded not guilty, asserting multiple times that the case is politically motivated.
