Telangana Police intensify probe into phone tapping case

Hyderabad, March 25:  The Telangana Police have intensified a probe into the sensational phone tapping case in which three police officials have already been arrested.

The investigating team has recovered, from the Musi river, parts of hard disks destroyed by the accused police officers to wipe out evidence of phone tapping by the Special Intelligence Branch (SIB) under the previous government of the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS).

The damaged hard disks were sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory for analysis.

The police will move a petition in a city court on Tuesday, seeking custody of two police officers arrested on Saturday.

Additional Superintendent of Police, Bhupalpally, N. Bhujanga Rao, and Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police, City Security Wing, Hyderabad City Police, Tirupathanna, were produced before a magistrate on Sunday and both were sent to judicial custody for 14 days.

The duo had reportedly admitted to destroying evidence of phone tapping. Both were booked under the Indian Penal Code's Section 409 (criminal breach of trust by public servant) and Section 70 of the Information Technology Act.

They had earlier served in the Special Intelligence Bureau (SIB) as Deputy Superintendents of Police. Their questioning is likely to bring out more facts in the case.

Police have already issued a lookout notice for former SIB chief Prabhakar Rao, former additional DCP, City Task Force, P. Radha Kishan Rao, and iNews TV channel MD Shravan Rao.

The SIT is also mulling summoning some key BRS leaders for questioning in the phone tapping case, as it was at their direction that the accused allegedly tapped the phones of leaders of opposition parties.

The matter came to light with the arrest of DSP, SIB, D. Praneeth Rao. He was suspended and arrested on March 13 for destroying evidence. He had allegedly erased data by destroying 50 hard disks after the defeat of the BRS in the Assembly elections.

During his questioning by the SIT, names of other officers allegedly involved in the case surfaced.

The arrest was made after a complaint by Additional Superintendent of Police, SIB, D. Ramesh, on March 10, alleging clandestine monitoring of individuals, unauthorised access to official records, and misuse of intelligence information.

After the election results were declared on December 3, 2023, Praneeth Rao allegedly disconnected CCTVs, erased data, and destroyed electronic devices.

The SIB is an anti-Maoist intelligence unit but Praneeth Rao was tasked with the job of gathering political intelligence along with a 10-member team. He was allegedly keeping tabs on the opposition leaders and directly reporting to Prabhakar Rao.

Prabhakar Rao, considered close to then Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao, resigned as SIB chief after the Congress came to power.