SC rejects bail to former Intelligence Chief Rao

Orders to surrender on Friday in phone-tapping case

In a major setback to former Telangana Intelligence chief T Prabhakar Rao, the Supreme Court on Thursday dismissed his anticipatory bail plea in the alleged illegal phone-tapping case and ordered him to surrender before the Special Investigation Team (SIT) at Jubilee Hills police station at 11 am on Friday.

During the case hearing before the Apex Court bench comprising Justices B.V. Nagaratna and R. Mahadevan, the Telangana government counsel argued that Rao has not been cooperating with the ongoing investigation and requested the court to allow for 'custodial interrogation'.

After hearing the submissions, the bench permitted 'custodial interrogation', cautioning that he must not be physically harmed. The court observed that Rao had 'not fully cooperated', including failing to restore iCloud credentials as directed.

Meanwhile, former police officers Radhakishan and Tirupati Rao have been arrested in the case, with Radhakishan reportedly naming former CM K. Chandrashekar Rao during questioning. The SIT has also grilled P. Rajasekhar Reddy, ex-OSD to KCR.