Telangana Governor Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan on Wednesday accused the TRS Government of tapping her phone. She also fired several salvoes at Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao and stated that there was an “undemocratic situation” prevailing in the state. The Governor alleged that the recent threat issued by All University Students Joint Action Committee to agitate in front of the Raj Bhavan was a politically motivated one.
Dr Soundararajan alleged that just after the MLA poaching case came to light, an official Twitter handle of the TRS had mentioned the Raj Bhavan’s involvement in the case. She said that Raj Bhavan and Tushar were mentioned in that particular tweet which led to the suspicion that her calls were being recorded.
“In a tape issue, they wanted to drag Raj Bhavan and mentioned Tushar. Tushar was my ADC. I suspect my phone is being tapped. Tushar was calling me two days ago to wish on Diwali. Only after that they mentioned Tushar,” she said.
While her former ADC is Tushar Vasan, ‘Tushar’ mentioned by the accused Ramachandra Bharti in the video footage was, according to Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, Tushar Velapally, a BJP ally who had contested in Wayanad against Congress MP Rahul Gandhi.
“I doubt my phone is being taped. My privacy is being interfered with. There is an undemocratic situation in the state particularly in respect to the governor,” said Dr Soundararajan, who was BJP unit president of Tamil Nadu prior to her appointment as a Governor. The TRS has accused her of being a political appointee.
For a long time, fresh trouble had been brewing between the Governor and the TRS Government over the Common Recruitment Board Bill as the ruling party accused the Governor of sitting on the Bill instead of giving her assent. The Governor said that she wanted the Education Minister to clarify her doubts about the Bill. Six Bills were sent to her just over a month ago and she wanted to take them up one after another.
Education Minister Sabitha Indra Reddy had yesterday said that she didn’t receive any letter from the Raj Bhavan. Today Dr Soundararajan took a swipe at the Chief Minister saying that if there is so much delay for a letter from the Raj Bhavan to reach Pragathi Bhavan (Chief Minister’s camp office-cum-residence) and then to the minister, “how will the voice of common man reach Pragathi Bhavan?”
A day after the High Court lifted the stay on police investigations in the MLA poaching case, the state government formed a Special Investigation Team headed by Hyderabad Commissioner of Police CV Anand. The GO stated: “Since the case is sensitive, high profile and sensational in nature and as it involves investigation in multiple dimensions which requires thorough scientific and evidence based investigation in an elaborate manner it requires officers with experience and requisite expertise with specific skill sets to carry out investigation.”
The team will include SP Nalgonda Rema Rajeshwari, DCP (Crime) Cyberabad Kalmeshwar Shingenevar, DCP Shamshabad R Jagadishwar Reddy, SP Narayanpet N Venkateshwaralu, ACP Rajendranagar B Gangadhar and SHO Moinabad Laxmi Reddy. The state BJP wanted the probe to be done by the CBI or a judicial commission and had approached the High Court with this plea.