HYDERABAD: T. Prabhakar Rao, former SIB chief and prime accused in unauthorised phone tapping case, is said to be cleverly using his cancer treatment as a pretext to buy time and evade Red Corner notice. City police commissioner, Kothakota Sreenivasa Reddy, being the authorised officer to take spot decisions himself, will be probing into unauthorised phone tapping.
According to law on international criminals, nodal agencies and immigration officials cannot issue a Red Corner notice or cancel the passport of any international criminal unless he is not in contact with the investigation agency, police sources said.
Using this loophole, Prabhakar, who is presently in Texas, US, has been in constant touch with Investigation agencies via mail and phone requesting them to give some time as he is undergoing cancer treatment.
Though SIT used a carrot-and-stick policy to make him come back, Prabhakar, being a former senior IPS officer, is pretty much aware that any agency cannot issue a Red Corner notice or cancel his passport legally as he was not absconding. He has been filing affidavits in the court only to prove that he was not absconding, a police officer disclosed.
Initially, Prabhakar said he would appear before the authorities in June first week, later postponed his arrival to June 26, and then to July first week. Apart from coordinating with the Telangana police, he filed an affidavit through his counsel requesting the local court to give him time to get his cancer treated, a senior police official disclosed.
Prabhakar appears to be running a coaching class in malpractices and how to misuse the law to evade arrest and prosecution, a senior police officer said.
As Telangana High Court’s Chief Justice Alok Aradhe had taken up the phone tapping case on a suo motu basis, former High Court assistant public prosecutor Poshetty Arun Kumar Rao said the High Court has powers to order to the authorities to cancel Prabhakar’s passport and possibly the Chief Justice may act on it very soon.
Responding to the High Court’s notice, Hyderabad police commissioner Kothakota Sreenivasa Reddy, who is now immediate investigation officer (IO) in the phone tapping case in response to the HC’s notice, submitted an affidavit mentioning the detailed facts about the investigation in the phone tapping case, police sources disclosed.
Earlier, S.M. Vijay Kumar, DCP west zone was the investigating officer (IO) of SIT that is probing unauthorised phone tapping cases but now city police commissioner is reportedly the present IO as he has the authority to take decisions, police sources disclosed.
“We are making our efforts if Prabhakar is dragging time, we have other legal options. I sternly warn Prabhakar to face prosecution, whatever he is doing is abuse of the constitutional court. This will not be tolerated any more and we will take a stern legal action,” a senior police official said.
