Former united Andhra Pradesh minister Jalagam Prasad Rao.
Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court has upheld the state government’s decision to withdraw the personal security officers (PSOs) provided to former united Andhra Pradesh minister Jalagam Prasad Rao, holding that there was no current threat perception warranting continued security.
Justice T Madhavi Devi dismissed the petition filed by Rao, observing that the Security Review Committee and the Commissioner of Police had considered intelligence inputs as well as the petitioner’s representations before concluding that there was no present threat to his life.
According to a report by LiveLaw, the court held that no individual has a vested or enforceable legal right to continue receiving personal security and that such arrangements are administrative decisions based on periodic threat assessments.
The court also noted that Rao, who served as a minister in the undivided Andhra Pradesh government between 1990 and 1994, has not been active in politics for more than three decades and currently resides in Hyderabad, visiting his native village only occasionally.
Rao, the son of former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Jalagam Vengal Rao, had challenged an order withdrawing his 1+1 Personal Security Officers (PSOs). He contended that his family had long faced threats from extremist organisations due to his father’s actions against extremist groups and his own public life.
The petitioner told the court that when his security cover was withdrawn in 2024, it was restored following directions from the High Court. He further claimed that after the earlier withdrawal, he received WhatsApp calls and messages demanding Rs 1 crore and warning that payment would be “in the interest of your safety.”
After the security cover was withdrawn again in June 2026, Rao approached the High Court, which directed the authorities to grant him a personal hearing before taking a final decision. He argued that despite submitting a detailed representation outlining his perceived threat, the authorities failed to properly consider his case.
Opposing the plea, the state government said the Security Review Committee had reviewed Rao’s case along with those of other protectees during its meeting on June 1, 2026, and found no specific or continuing threat warranting security.
The government also informed the court that intelligence agencies had found no threat to Rao from CPI (Maoist) or any other Left Wing Extremist organisation. It further stated that the WhatsApp number from which the alleged threats were sent belonged to a tailor in Nellore and had no links to extremist groups.
After examining the threat perception report submitted in a sealed cover, the High Court accepted the government’s stand and declined to interfere with the administrative decision, dismissing the petition.
This post was last modified on July 24, 2026 3:32 pm