BRS working president K. T. Rama Rao, who is under attack over phone tapping of politicians during the BRS regime, has offered to undergo a polygraph test and challenged the same to Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy and Union Minister G. Kishan Reddy.
Throwing down the challenge during a debate on a vernacular news channel, Mr. Rama Rao said, “Phone tapping of unsocial elements and extremists by police is normal in any government. However, if it is misused by police officials, they should be punished.”
Mr. Rama Rao alleged that Mr. Revanth Reddy was tapping the phones of his ministerial colleagues Bhatti Vikramarka, Ponguleti Srinivas Reddy and Uttam Kumar Reddy. “Let Mr. Revanth Reddy take the lie detector test to prove that phones of his ministerial colleagues were not being tapped by him. Let Mr. Kishan Reddy also take the test saying that the Centre was not tapping the phones of its political rivals,” he said.
In support of his argument that surveillance was a normal practice in any government, the former IT Minister also played out a video of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in which he had remarked that phone tapping was necessary in the interests of national security but utmost caution must be exercised while indulging in it.
“Today the government is leaking investigation details to the media to suit their interests. Mudslinging will not benefit anyone. If Mr. Revanth Reddy has guts he should reveal the investigation details through a press conference rather than selectively leaking it to the media,” he said. He also argued that only those officers belonging to KCR’s community were being targeted.
The BRS working president felt that the arrest of his sister and BRS MLC K Kavitha was a pressure tactic by the BJP to push the BRS to toe its line. “It is a false case and we will legally fight it,” he maintained even as he displayed the pictures of several opposition leaders, who were charged with corruption cases but withdrawn once they joined the BJP.
On the continuous desertions from the BRS, he said those leaving the party had gone for their political and personal benefit. He admitted that the BRS had committed a mistake giving prominence to outsiders rather than those sailing with it since its inception. He was harsh on BRS MLA Kadiyam Srihari, who joined the Congress, saying none betrayed KCR like him.
Mr. Rama Rao reiterated his allegations that Chief Minister Revanth Reddy will join the BJP after the Parliament elections. “The ticket selection of the Congress indicates that the CM is building up his team to take them along to the BJP,” he said and claimed that Mr. Reddy was worried over the BJP opening the ‘vote for note’ case.
