Hyderabad, January 23 (). Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) working president KT Rama Rao (KTR) on Friday appeared before the SIT probing the phone tapping case.
BRS leaders reached the Jubilee Hills police station office at 11 am amid tight security.
The investigating officer, Assistant Commissioner of Police P. Venkatagiri, had on Thursday issued a notice to KTR directing him to appear before him.
The notice issued under Section 160 of the Code of Criminal Procedure said that during the investigation, the investigating officer discovered that KTR was familiar with the facts and circumstances of the case, and therefore his personal questioning was necessary for the investigation.
Earlier, BRS leaders reached the party headquarters, Telangana Bhavan, where a large number of party workers had gathered to show their support. There was mild tension outside Telangana Bhavan as some BRS workers had an altercation with policemen.
BRS alleged that police ‘overacted’, leading to sloganeering by party workers.
Senior BRS leader and former minister T. Harish Rao and some other party leaders accompanied KTR to the Jubilee Hills police station. The police had made tight security arrangements around the police station. Barricades were erected to prevent BRS workers from coming close to the premises.
The notice to KTR was issued two days after Harish Rao was questioned by the SIT.
The case pertains to the alleged tapping of phones of political opponents, businessmen, journalists and even judges during the tenure of the previous BRS government.
SIT had earlier investigated Beers MLC K in the same case. Naveen Rao and former MLAs Jaipal Yadav and C. Lingaiah were interrogated.
It also criticized Union Minister of State for Home Bandi Sanjay and BJP MPs Eatala Rajender and M. Raghunandan Rao, Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee President B. Mahesh Kumar Gaur and Chief Minister Revanth Reddy K Kondal Reddy were also examined as witnesses/victims.
The case of phone tapping came to light in March 2024. An FIR was registered at Punjagutta police station in Hyderabad under various sections of the Indian Penal Code, Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act and Information Technology Act.
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SAK/AS