Former Deputy Commissioner of Police (Task Force, Hyderabad City) P Radhakishan Rao has confessed to his involvement in the tapping of phones by some officers in the Telangana Special Intelligence Bureau (SIB) when the BRS government was in power, police sources say.
The Hyderabad Police, which is investigating allegations of phones being tapped of politicians, officials, activists and others during the BRS regime, has attached Radhakishan Rao’s confession statement to other documents submitted to the Nampally Criminal Court.
Sources said that as per the confession statement, Radhakishan Rao admitted to his involvement in conducting surveillance on politicians and others under the directions of the then SIB chief T Prabhakar Rao.
According to sources, Rao told investigators that anyone who spoke against the K Chandrashekar Rao-led BRS government, or anyone who was thought to be a threat to the party, was put under extensive electronic surveillance. Sources said the information about political leaders – both within BRS and in the opposition – who needed to be put under surveillance was given to former SIB deputy Superintendent of Police D Praneeth Rao. He would allegedly profile them and lead an extensive operation to tap their phones so they can be kept under watch at all times.
The surveillance and phone tapping was at the centre of a bitter political row last year, with BJP leaders such as Bandi Sanjay Kumar sharpening their attack on then chief minister KCR.
According to sources, those under surveillance included former IPS officer R S Praveen Kumar, who had taken VRS and joined the BSP, and more recently the BRS. Former BRS leader and MLA Kadiam Srihari, who recently joined the Congress; former BRS minister T Rajaiah; former Tandur MLA Patnam Mahender Reddy, who had turned into a BRS critic and recently joined the Congress; Congress leader K Jana Reddy and his two sons; and several district-level Congress leaders were also under put surveillance, sources said.
Sources said that the movements of several industrialists, builders, businessmen, journalists and bureaucrats were also kept under watch, mainly to track who they were talking to or meeting. After finding that many individuals had switched to using encrypted platforms like WhatsApp or Snapchat for communication, the then SIB chief Prabhakar Rao allegedly directed the team to track calls using Internet Protocol Data Records, sources said.
Prabhakar Rao has been named as the main accused in the case. Police have also arrested suspended DSP Praneeth Rao and Additional Superintendents of Police N Bhujanga Rao and M Thirupatanna, apart from P Radhakishan Rao.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
First uploaded on: 27-05-2024 at 19:51 IST
