Hyderabad: Panjagutta police have taken into custody the retired task force DCP Radha Kishan Rao, who is on remand in Chanchalguda Jail in phone tapping cases.
The Nampally court on Saturday allowed the police to take seven days of custody to get more details from Radha Kishan Rao.
To this extent, the Panjagutta police detained him from the jail and took him to Osmania Hospital for medical examination. After a medical examination, Radha Kishan Rao was taken to Banjara Hills Police Station.
Former DCP Radha Kishan Rao, who is the fourth police officer to be arrested in the case of the phone tapping of opposition leaders and businessmen during the previous Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) government in Telangana, claimed on Monday, April 1, that officials involved spoke about ensuring BRS continued to stay in power.
Radha Krishna Rao also claimed the cash was moved in official vehicles in the 2018 and 2023 Assembly polls.
As reported by NDTV, the arrested police officer said Praneeth Rao, Bhujanga Rao, Tirupatanna, and Venugopal Rao conspired under the leadership of the then Special Intelligence Bureau (SIB) chief T Prabhakar Rao, to ensure the BRS remains in power in Telangana.
In the case booked by the Hyderabad police on the issue, so far, apart from DCP Radha Kishan Rao, DSP Praneeth Rao and Additional Superintendents of Police Bhujanga Rao and Thirupathanna have been arrested.
The phone-tapping matter came to light with the arrest of DSP Praneeth Rao.
He was suspended and arrested on March 13 for destroying evidence. He had allegedly erased data by destroying 50 hard disks after the defeat of the BRS in Assembly elections. The arrest was made on a complaint by ASP (SIB), D Ramesh, on March 10, alleging clandestine monitoring of individuals, unauthorised access to official records, and misuse of intelligence information.
SIB is an anti-Maoist intelligence unit but Praneeth Rao was tasked with the job of gathering political intelligence along with a 10-member team. He was allegedly keeping tabs on the opposition leaders and directly reporting to SIB chief Prabhakar Rao, who has been named as the main accused and faces a lookout notice. Prabhakar Rao is expected to arrive in Hyderabad from the United States soon.
