Hyderabad: Giving a dramatic turn to note-for-vote scandal, a TDP MLA on Monday filed an FIR against Telangana CM K Chandrashekar Rao for allegedly tapping phones of party MLAs and trying to defame Andhra Pradesh CM Chandrababu Naidu.
As the Telangana Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) inches closer to summoning Naidu for questioning in the case, the TDP government in a counter-move had on Sunday decided to complain to the Centre against the K Chandrashekar Rao-led TRS government for snooping on him.
“If the TRS has one point to accuse Naidu, then we have many to complain against KCR. Based on the statement of Telangana home minister N Narasimha Reddy, it is evident that the Telangana government has tapped the phones of our CM and other MLAs,” AP irrigation minister Devineni Umamaheswar Rao told TOI.
Amid reports that the ACB was preparing to arraign him in the bribery case, Naidu on Sunday met Narasimha at Raj Bhavan. In a closed-door meeting, the AP chief minister is understood to have complained against Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao of tapping his telephone.
“As Hyderabad is a common capital and we have the common governor, we have all the rights take the matter to the Raj Bhavan. We have not only petitioned the governor, we are also going to take it up with the Centre,” Umamaheswar said.
Naidu’s meeting with the governor significantly comes amid reports that the ACB was going to use the AP CM’s telephonic conversation with nominated Anglo Indian MLA Elvis Stephenson as the main proof among other evidence, gathered to name him in the case.
The Telangana CM along with the ACB director general had met Narasimhan on Friday stoking speculations that the investigating agency was preparing grounds for seeking the governor’s sanction to prosecute the AP CM.
An audio tape of a purported telephonic conversation between N Chandrababu Naidu and nominated Telangana legislator Elvis Stephenson had been released on Sunday. The Andhra government denied that it’s Naidu’s voice.
The audio tape was first played T News, a Telugu news channel owned by ruling TRS and was later picked up by others.
During the conversation, Naidu purportedly assured the nominated member that he is with him. “Our people briefed me. I am with you don’t bother. For everything I am with you. What all they spoke we will honour,” Naidu was heard as telling the legislator.
