Phone tapping claims in Telangana escalates into

Political brawl; Cong, BJP accuse BRS of wiretapping ‘The equipment, having range of 300 metre, was imported from Israel, using a software company as a cover’

HYDERABAD: The Telangana state government is investigating allegations that the state’s intelligence agency, the Special Intelligence Bureau (SIB), illegally tapped phones of political leaders, activists, and ordinary people during the previous government’s rule. Denying any wrongdoing, the Bharatiya Rashtra Samithi (BRS), the party in power before, called for a full investigation.

The Congress and the BJP, the current ruling party and the main Opposition party respectively, have also alleged that their phones were tapped, claimed a news report published by Indian Express on Tuesday. They have demanded that the investigation be widened.

Three former senior police officers have been arrested so far, and authorities are looking for two more, including the former head of the SIB. The police are seeking to question some of the arrested officials to get more information about the case.

BRS’s working president and ex-minister, K T Rama Rao, has urged Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy to initiate an inquiry.

Rama Rao, addressing party workers, responded to the allegations of unlawful surveillance on Opposition leaders, activists, and critics during the BRS rule. He encouraged the CM to conduct a detailed investigation and take necessary action if any illegality was found. He asserted that no BRS leader could be implicated as they were not involved in any illegal activities.

Meanwhile, Congress leaders have called for the investigation to be extended to other districts. Yennam Srinivas Reddy, a Congress MLA from Mahbubnagar, revealed that he recently discovered that Congress leaders in the districts were also under surveillance during the BRS rule. He has requested the Director General of Police to widen the investigation beyond Hyderabad.

The BJP has also entered the fray, with Telangana BJP chief G Kishan Reddy alleging that not only political leaders but also businessmen and ordinary citizens were harassed by these officers under BRS’s directives.

Three former senior police officers have been arrested so far, and authorities are looking for two more, including the former head of the SIB