Police body slams Harish Rao remarks

The Telangana Police Officers' Association has condemned the comments made by former minister and BRS leader T. Harish Rao against the police officials.

The Association said on Friday that his comments against Telangana police Department are completely false, baseless, malicious, and illegal.

In a warning, Harish Rao had said that those misusing power will be held accountable in the future even after they retire.

He gave the warning while reacting to notice issued to BRS working president K. T. Rama Rao by the Special Investigation Team (SIT) in phone-tapping case.

Harish Rao accused the police of acting at the behest of their political bosses.

“Congress is using the SIT to target the BRS leaders with a political vendetta. Some police officials are acting excessively and crossing the law to impress their Congress bosses,” Harish Rao said.

Police Officers’ Association demanded that Harish Rao immediately and unconditionally withdraw his remarks against senior police officers and publicly apologise to the Telangana Police Department.

It also warned that if he fails to withdraw the remarks and tender an apology, all applicable legal actions (civil and criminal) will be initiated against him in view of the damage caused to the reputation of the police department and the obstruction of the judicial process.

Police Officers’ Association president Y. Gopi Reddy said in a statement that the comments were made with the intention of tarnishing the reputation of the police department and undermining public trust.

During the investigation of cases, the investigating officer has the full legal authority to collect evidence, review the collected evidence, and summon anyone for questioning at any time if necessary. Police officers perform their duties within the framework of laws such as BNSS, BNS, and BSA, and without any political bias. The final authority to determine the truth in any case rests entirely with the courts, he said.

“Making baseless, irresponsible, and insulting remarks against investigating officers while an investigation is ongoing is considered an attempt to influence the judicial process and a threatening attack on the investigating officers. We clearly state that such comments are not only illegal but also punishable offence,” he added.

Meanwhile, Congress MLC Balmoor Venkat lodged a complaint with the Director General of Police (DGP) alleging that former ministers K.T. Rama Rao and Harish Rao are attempting to intimidate officials investigating the phone tapping case.

Venkat alleged that the two leaders are threatening SIT officials and making statements aimed at instilling fear among investigating officers, thereby attempting to influence the course of the probe.

He said he had submitted a complaint along with supporting evidence to the Additional DGP, seeking immediate legal action.