BRS alleges govt of targeting party leaders without evidence in phone tapping case

BRS has accused Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy of targeting opposition leaders in the phone tapping case, alleging pressure on officials, misuse of police machinery, and surveillance attempts, while demanding a fair and evidence-based investigation into the matter.

Hyderabad: Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy was trying to implicate opposition leaders in the ongoing phone tapping case, alleged the BRS on Thursday.

Addressing the media, BRS general secretary RS Praveen Kumar demanded a fair and evidence-based investigation as per the law. He alleged that the Congress government was conspiring to implicate BRS leaders, including K Chandrashekhar Rao, KT Rama Rao and T Harish Rao, in the chargesheet. A case was registered at Panjagutta police station earlier based on a complaint by a police official, followed by the setting up of two Special Investigation Teams (SITs) to name the BRS leaders.

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He said officials were being pressured to include the names of BRS leaders even though the investigation was incomplete. “Over 350 witnesses have been examined in the last two years, yet no chargesheet has been filed so far,” he said.

The former IPS officer stated that phone tapping was being carried out legally for national security purposes under every government, which was acknowledged by Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy himself. However, he alleged that the present case was being used to target opposition leaders. He urged police officials not to act unlawfully to serve their political bosses, saying it could land them in trouble at a later stage.

Citing the case of ISRO scientist Nambi Narayanan, who was falsely arrested on allegations of selling State secrets to enemies, he reminded that the Supreme Court had not only acquitted the scientist but also imposed stringent punishment on the police authorities for their involvement.

He cautioned that any tampering with the case would attract criminal proceedings against the officials responsible. “Hence, I urge my police friends not to indulge in such false cases. Do not create false evidence. Please follow the law and investigate the cases based on evidence,” he appealed, asserting that action would be initiated against those who violate the law after the BRS returns to power.

Praveen Kumar also raised concerns over the treatment of individuals linked to the case. He said former police officer Prabhakar Rao was subjected to harsh custodial conditions. He alleged that attempts were being made to extract statements against BRS leaders through coercion. Citing an example, he said a businessman facing multiple cases was being pressured to name BRS MLC Naveen Kumar in another case.

Accusing the government of misusing the police machinery, he said the department was being weakened under political pressure. He also alleged surveillance and hacking attempts targeting BRS leaders, including tampering with CCTV systems and mobile phones, and sought a separate SIT probe into the claims.

Praveen Kumar said he had received alerts from Apple about a possible hacking attempt and had reported it to the Central Crime Station. He asserted that BRS leaders would face the cases legally.