Telangana Phone Tapping Case: Former SIB chief seeks political asylum in US

Hyderabad: Former SIB chief T. Prabhakar Rao, who allegedly oversaw the phone-tapping of the BRS government, has reportedly filed a petition seeking `political asylum' before a court in the USA.

Prabhakar Rao, who reported obtained a green card after staying at his son's residence for the past few months after the snooping became public, is understood to have filed the asylum petition to avoid the Hyderabad police investigation in connection with the phone-tapping case.

The Hyderabad police have arrested four senior police officers — G. Praneeth Rao, N. Bhujanga Rao, M. Tirupatanna and P. Radha Kishan Rao — for their alleged role in the phone-tapping operation. Following their questioning, a special investigation team probing the case obtained leads about the role of the former SIB chief.

"We have verified with the US embassy, and it was confirmed that Prabhakar Rao has obtained a green card by paying a certain amount. We will look into the issue of his filing a petition seeking `political asylum'. After obtaining the information, we will proceed as per law," sources said.

According to the sources, Prabhakar Rao in his asylum petition reportedly stated that he had held various senior positions, and that the police had registered cases against him. The former SIB chief also reportedly mentioned that he is a patient suffering from chronic disease and undergoing treatment. Prabhakar Rao also reportedly mentioned in the petition that he obtained a green card from the USA authorities legally.

Following the latest development, the Hyderabad police is likely to convene a meeting with the legal teams by thoroughly following up the issuing red corner notice to Prabhakar Rao.