The team is tasked with completing the investigation expeditiously while maintaining the highest levels of professional competence.
Published Dec 19, 2025 | 8:49 AM ⚊ Updated Dec 19, 2025 | 8:49 AM
(Representational image/Creative Commons)
Synopsis: The Telangana government constituted a Special Investigation Team to expedite the investigation into the phone-tapping case and file a charge sheet in court. The SIT will operate under the supervision of Hyderabad Police Commissioner VC Sajjanar.
In a significant development in the ongoing phone-tapping case that rocked Telangana’s political landscape, the state government constituted a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to expedite the investigation and file a charge sheet in court.
The move comes close on the heels of the recent surrender of key accused in the case, former Special Intelligence Bureau (SIB) chief T Prabhakar Rao.
According to a memo issued on Thursday, 18 December, the SIT will investigate the crime (No. 243/2024) registered at Panjagutta Police Station in Hyderabad.
The SIT will operate under the supervision of Hyderabad Police Commissioner VC Sajjanar. The members of the SIT are:
Amber Kishore Jha, IPS – Commissioner of Police, Ramagundam
SM Vijay Kumar, IPS – Commissioner of Police, Siddipet
Ritiraj, IPS – Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP), Madhapur
K Narayan Reddy, IPS – DCP, Maheshwaram
M Ravinder Reddy – Group Commander, Greyhounds
KS Rao – Additional DCP, Rajendra Nagar
P Venkatagiri – Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), Jubilee Hills (Investigating Officer)
Ch. Sridhar – Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), Telangana State Anti-Narcotics Bureau
Nagender Rao – DSP, Hyderabad Metro Rail Limited
The team is tasked with completing the investigation expeditiously while maintaining the highest levels of professional competence.
The phone tapping controversy traces back to allegations of widespread illegal surveillance allegedly conducted by the SIB during the tenure of the previous BRS government led by K Chandrashekar Rao.
The case surfaced in March 2024, shortly after the Congress party assumed power in Telangana following the December 2023 Assembly elections.
Investigations revealed that SIB officials, including suspended DSP D Praneeth Rao — arrested on 13 March 2024 — allegedly tapped the phones of Opposition leaders, judges, journalists, businessmen, and other prominent figures to gather intelligence for political advantage.
Apart from this, accused officers are said to have destroyed evidence by damaging over 40 hard drives and other storage devices containing tapped data, leading to the inclusion of charges under the PDPP and IT Acts.
Two other senior officers, Additional Superintendents of Police (ASPs) N Bhujanga Rao and Thirupathanna, were also arrested for colluding in the operation.
The scandal drew widespread condemnation, with current Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy vowing in March 2024 that all involved would face jail time, emphasising that the tapping was done to please political superiors.
The Telangana High Court had issued notices to the state government, Hyderabad Commissioner of Police, and the investigating officer in December 2024, with responses due by 23 December 2024. Prabhakar Rao, named as the main accused, secured interim protection from the Supreme Court in May 2025 but faced mounting pressure to return.
He finally returned to Hyderabad in June 2025 after 15 months abroad and appeared for questioning.
The case involved serious allegations under Sections 409, 427, 201, and 120(B) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), Section 3 of the Prevention of Damage to Public Property (PDPP) Act, and Sections 65, 66, and 70 of the Information Technology (IT) Act, 2000.
These charges relate to criminal breach of trust, mischief causing damage, disappearance of evidence, conspiracy, damage to public property, and computer-related offences, including hacking and tampering with protected systems.
(Edited by Muhammed Fazil.)
