After Harish Rao, KTR gets SIT notice; BRS alleges political vendetta

Sircilla (Telangana) [India], January 22 (ANI): BRS working president KTR on Thursday alleged that the ongoing phone-tapping investigation in Telangana is politically motivated, targeting opposition leaders while diverting attention from governance failures.
He received a notice from the Special Investigation Team (SIT) a day after senior BRS leader T Harish Rao was summoned.
The SIT has directed KTR to appear before investigators tomorrow at 11 AM. He will be questioned by the Investigating Officer regarding allegations that intelligence officers tapped phones under the direction of the then top leadership.
Addressing the media in Sircilla, KTR described the SIT probe as a "time-pass exercise", claiming notices were issued selectively to BRS leaders while senior police and intelligence officials were not being questioned.
"If the investigation is genuine, senior officials should be questioned first. Instead, political leaders are being targeted," he said, calling the case baseless.
KTR said intelligence gathering is a routine government function, existing since Jawaharlal Nehru's time and continuing under Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He emphasised that such systems operate within police and intelligence frameworks, not at the discretion of ministers.
He challenged the government to produce a senior official willing to publicly state that opposition phones were not being tapped. KTR alleged that selective leaks were given to the media while official press briefings were avoided, and that the case has dragged on for nearly two years without a formal update.
Criticising governance, he said the Congress government had failed to deliver on promises such as financial assistance for women and the six guarantees.
"Instead of addressing people's issues, the government raises controversies--from Kaleshwaram to Formula E, sheep procurement, and now phone-tapping," he said.
He also accused the government of selective enforcement: "When Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy's son carries out land grabbing with goons, there is no SIT. When the coal scam involving Revanth Reddy's brother-in-law is exposed, there is no SIT either. Kishan Reddy's remarks are laughable. He says a CBI inquiry will be ordered if the government asks for it--will a thief ever admit on his own that he committed the theft?"
KTR demanded SIT probes into alleged irregularities in coal contracts, AMRUT projects, and Gachibowli land dealings. He said he had submitted documents in Delhi about contracts awarded to allegedly ineligible firms.
Maintaining that neither he nor other BRS leaders had committed wrongdoing, KTR said the party would cooperate fully with the SIT but would not accept political harassment.
"Surveillance exists solely for national security and public order--not for political targeting," he concluded. (ANI)