For the first time in the Telangana phone tapping case, a Special Investigation Team (SIT) of the state police has issued a notice to former Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, asking him to appear and record his statement. The allegations pertain to the period of the previous Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) government, sources told news agency PTI.

To serve the notice, SIT officials visited Rao’s residence at Nandi Nagar in Banjara Hills. He was served the notice under Section 160 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC).

Appearance Sought On January 30

The SIT has asked Rao, popularly known as KCR, to appear before it on January 30. In the notice, the investigators informed him that given his age is over 65, Section 160 of the CrPC allows him the option of appearing at the Jubilee Hills Police Station or suggesting any other location in Hyderabad that would be convenient for questioning.

Statements Of Family Members Already Recorded

The SIT has already questioned several senior BRS leaders in connection with the case. Statements of KCR’s son and BRS Working President KT Rama Rao, nephews T Harish Rao and Joginipally Santosh Kumar have been recorded.

Earlier, KT Rama Rao and senior party MLA T Harish Rao appeared before the SIT on January 23 and January 20, respectively. Besides them, several other BRS leaders have also been summoned and questioned by the investigation team.

About The Phone Tapping Case

The case relates to allegations of widespread unauthorised and illegal phone surveillance and interception during the previous BRS regime. Police have said the alleged surveillance involved politicians, businessmen, journalists, members of the judiciary and other eminent personalities.

Former Telangana intelligence chief T Prabhakar Rao, the prime accused in the case, has already been questioned by the SIT.

Arrests And Bail

A suspended Deputy Superintendent of Police from the Telangana Special Intelligence Bureau (SIB) was among four police officials arrested by Hyderabad Police since March 2024. They were accused of erasing intelligence information from electronic devices and of involvement in illegal phone tapping during the earlier BRS government. The arrested officials were later granted bail.