Harish Rao Calls SIT Notice ‘Trash’, KTR Says Govt Covering Singareni Scam

Telangana’s political temperature rose sharply again on Tuesday after police issued notices to former BRS minister T. Harish Rao in the phone tapping case , setting off a fierce backlash from the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS). The party alleged that the Congress government was reviving an old controversy not for justice, but to distract from what it calls a larger scandal linked to Singareni coal tenders .

Addressing the media at Telangana Bhavan , BRS Working President K. T. Rama Rao (KTR) launched a direct attack on Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy , accusing him of “diversion politics” to cover up failures in governance and alleged corruption. KTR alleged that coal tendering in Singareni had been manipulated to benefit the Chief Minister’s relative Srujan Reddy , claiming the BRS had exposed “irregularities with evidence.” According to him, the sudden revival of the phone tapping issue was designed to shift public focus away from the tender controversy that has begun dominating the political narrative.

KTR also cited earlier Supreme Court observations , arguing that the phone tapping case had already been questioned at the highest judicial level. He said issuing fresh notices despite those remarks reflected the government’s desperation. The BRS leader further claimed Harish Rao was being targeted because of his aggressive questioning of the Congress administration in the Assembly, particularly on alleged financial mismanagement and tender-related irregularities.

Harish Rao Reacts

Harish Rao responded with equal sharpness, calling the notice political harassment aimed at intimidating the opposition. He appeared before the SIT and said he cooperated fully, but insisted there was no substance in the questioning. Reports quoted him describing the notice as “trash,” while alleging investigators repeatedly stepped out during questioning, suggesting they were acting under instructions.

He denied any role in phone tapping and stressed that he was not the Home Minister , alleging selective targeting. Harish Rao also claimed he ended up asking “more questions than the SIT asked,” and demanded that senior police and intelligence officials from the earlier period should be questioned as well. He warned that attempts to leak details to the media in order to frame a narrative would not succeed.

BRS Escalates Singareni Demands

KTR questioned the silence of the BJP, asking why Union Minister G. Kishan Reddy had not reacted to the tender allegations. He demanded an independent probe, including a judicial investigation monitored by a sitting Supreme Court judge .

BRS leaders and cadres gathered in large numbers outside Telangana Bhavan to show solidarity with Harish Rao. Meanwhile, BRS MLC Dasoju Sravan Kumar also attacked the government, calling the notices legally weak and aimed at suppressing dissent, alleging misuse of multiple legal provisions to silence the opposition.