Hyderabad, June 9 (IANS) In a key development in the phone tapping case in Telangana, former Special Intelligence Bureau (SIB) chief T. Prabhakar Rao on Monday appeared before the Special Investigation Team (SIT).

The retired Indian Police Service (IPS) officer, who returned to Hyderabad on Sunday night from the United States after 14 months, appeared before SIT officials at Panjagutta Police Station.

Prabhakar Rao is the number one accused in the phone tapping case booked in March last year.

The case relates to the alleged tapping of phones of politicians, businessmen, journalists and even judges under the previous government of Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS).

The SIT is hoping to gather vital information from the former SIB chief as part of their investigation.

He is likely to be questioned based on the information gathered during the questioning of four police officials, who were arrested in the case.

Prabhakar Rao, who was heading the SIB when BRS was in power, was declared an absconder by the SIT.

Nampally criminal court in Hyderabad last month issued proclamation orders against Prabhakar Rao for evading proceedings for over a year.

There are allegations that Prabhakar Rao had constituted a team within SIB with his trusted aides, including Praneeth Rao, for surveillance of rival political leaders, their families and dissidents within the ruling party, businessmen, journalists and even judges.

The allegations under the previous government of BRS came to light in March last year with the arrest of Deputy Superintendent of Police Praneeth Rao following a complaint from his superior, D. Ramesh, Additional SP with the SIB.

The police have so far named six accused in the case. Praneeth Rao, Additional SPs Thirupathanna and Bhujanga Rao and former DCP P. Radha Kishan Rao were arrested in the case.

Prabhakar Rao had left for the US just before the case was registered against him. The SIT had issued notices to him to appear before it.

As he failed to return and appear before the SIT, he was declared an absconder, and his passport was also revoked.

However, the Supreme Court on May 29 directed authorities to arrange an emergency travel document to enable Prabhakar Rao to return.

A bench of Justice B.V. Nagarathna and Justice Satish Chandra Sharma had passed the order on a petition by Prabhakar, challenging the Telangana High Court order dismissing his petition for anticipatory bail.

The bench also barred police from taking any coercive step against Rao till further orders.

On the Supreme Court’s direction, he gave an undertaking that he would return to India soon after receiving an emergency travel document and cooperate with the investigation.

Stating that Prabhakar Rao has been hounded by the present government in Telangana, his counsel had brought to the court’s notice that a red corner notice was issued against him.

–IANS

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