The BRS working president said phone tapping is part of many surveillance methods adopted by the police to avert threats from terrorists and extremists.
Published Date – 12 April 2024, 10:50 PM
Hyderabad: In a strong counter to allegations against him, BRS working president KT Rama Rao offered to undergo a polygraph test (lie detector) or a narcoanalysis test to prove his innocence in the alleged phone tapping case. However, he dared Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy and union Minister G Kishan Reddy to undergo similar tests to prove that their respective governments were not tapping the phones of their Cabinet colleagues and political rivals.
“I am ready for a polygraph or a narcoanalysis test to prove my innocence in the phone tapping case before the media or any other public platform. But will Revanth Reddy undergo the same tests to prove that he is not having tapped the phones of his Cabinet colleagues Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka, Uttam Kumar Reddy and Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy among others. Can Kishan Reddy prove that the Centre is not tapping the phones of the opposition leaders and other political rivals,” he questioned, during an interview with a vernacular news channel on Friday.
The BRS working president said phone tapping is part of many surveillance methods adopted by the police to avert threats from terrorists and extremists. He cited the public acknowledgement of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh emphasising the need for phone tapping.
Rama Rao reiterated that he was not involved in any phone tapping and the allegations made by the Congress, was part of a conspiracy to damage his reputation which he will continue to fight legally. He challenged the State government to give an official statement on the ongoing investigation into the phone tapping case, rather than giving select leaks through media, to mislead people of the State and divert their attention from the State government’s failure to implement its promises. “If the government has any concrete evidence, it should be made public,” he added.
Further, the former Minister asserted the Delhi excise policy case against BRS MLC K Kavitha was only a pressure tactic being used by the BJP against the BRS to concede. He said the BJP was misusing the Central agencies to target the opposition leaders and soon after these accused join the party, they are being presented as if all their sins have been washed and purified. “Kavitha has done nothing wrong and she will come out unscathed. This is a conspiracy by the BJP and people have already realised it,” he said.
On some leaders deserting the party, the BRS working president stated that the party was already overcrowded and some leaders leaving it, will not have any impact as the party cadre was intact. While many people betrayed BRS chief K Chandrashekhar Rao, he said none was a match for Kadiyam Srihari. However, he declared that the BRS which successfully performed its role as the leader of Telangana agitation and the ruling party, will now play the role of a constructive opposition in the State. He exuded confidence that the party will play a decisive role in the national politics.