HYDERABAD: P Radha Kishan Rao, Former officer on special duty (OSD) for the Task Force, confessed that he helped the ruling BRS on several occasions and also deputed a Task Force team to transport Rs 1 crore cash and hand it over to former IAS officer and now Medak Lok Sabha BRS candidate P Venkataram Reddy. The money was transported during the Assembly elections held in November. He confessed that all the postings in the Task Force were based on caste equations.
During elections, Radha Kishan, according to the remand report, transported huge amounts of money from Yashoda Hospital to various locations utilising Task Force vehicles. The remand report highlights the confessions from two inspectors and a sub-inspector, alongside Radha Kishan’s detailed admission of his actions. On November 4, 2023, it was reported that while Praneeth Rao destroyed hard disks in the SIB logger room, Radha Kishan proceeded to format his two mobile phones, which were subsequently confiscated by the authorities for data retrieval.
According to the remand report, Radha Kishan confessed that he used Task Force vehicles to ferry cash to hoodwink Flying Squad Teams (FST) and Static Surveillance Teams (SST) deployed by the Election Commission of India during the Assembly elections. He admitted that he assigned the task of carrying cash to Sai Kiran, a sub-inspector working in the Central Zone Task Force, on two separate occasions in a government vehicle from different locations to be delivered to Divya Charan Rao, a retired police officer associated with Yashoda Hospital. On one occasion, the SI was asked to meet an associate of Charan Rao at Ranigunj to collect Rs 1 crore and deliver it to Charan Rao at Yashoda Hospital.
Similarly, another operation involved collecting and transporting similar amount from Afzalgunj.
Radha Kishan facilitated the movement of funds for BRS MLC Venkataram Reddy amidst the general elections because of the duo’s personal relationship. He disclosed providing a new iPhone and a SIM card to the SI for the exclusive purpose of conducting these covert operations. Venkataram Reddy and his brothers— notably associated with Rajapushpa Constructions — sought his assistance in the secret deals. This request was made as both Rao and Reddy were childhood friends, the remand report said.
Subsequently, Radha Kishan instructed the SI to liaise with Shiva Charan Reddy, a neighbour of the MLC, to coordinate the money transport operations under the guise of helping citizens for an emergency purpose. This operation involved two other transactions entailing the collection and delivery of Rs 1 crore each time to Shiva Charan Reddy at different locations.
SI SUSPECTED EX-OSD’s ORDERS
SI Sai Kiran remained in the dark about the intention of Radha Kishan behind cash transportation. He, however, realised the true intent only after the removal of Radha Kishan by the Election Commission due to his suspected partiality towards the BRS.
Inspector Gundu Venkat Rao, who had worked in the SIB, confessed about the unauthorised surveillance based on the instructions of Prabhakar Rao, chief, SIB and Praneeth Kumar, DSP, SIB and spoke about the involvement of Radha Kishan.
Inspector seized cash of opposition parties
The inspector revealed that he confiscated cash pertaining to opposition political parties on the basis of actionable inputs shared by Radha Kishan and on the instructions given by Prabhakar Rao and Praneeth Kumar.
In the confession by Kanumarla Srikanth, another Task Force inspector, he revealed that he seized cash in eight different incidents. The orders were given to him by the former OSD and SIB field staff assisted him in the seizures.
SI Sara Sai Kiran Reddy who assisted Radha Kishan in money transportations confessed, “The illegal cash transfers were made at the behest of Radha Kishan Rao, Divya Charan Rao, retired police officer, and Shiva Charan Reddy, partner and associate of Venkat Rami Reddy of Rajapushpa Properties Private Limited."
CONFESSIONS BY RADHA KISHAN RAO
After the formation of the BRS government in 2014, T Prabhakar Rao was appointed DIG in the Intelligence department on caste equations
During this time, his trusted subordinates of his community
The police officers hand-picked by Prabhakar Rao are Praneeth Rao from Nalgonda, Bhujanga Rao from Rachaknonda, Venugopal Rao from Cyberabad, Thirupathanna from Hyderabad city police etc. on equations of caste and recommendations of Prabhakar Rao.
Radha Kishan Rao confessed that he was posted to DCP Task Force as recommended by Prabhakar Rao n 2017 to maintain a hold on Hyderabad city for political and other reasons
Prabhakar Rao, Radha Kishan Rao, Bhujanga Rao, Praneeth Rao used to meet regularly and discuss the strengthening of BRS and see that the BRS regime continued to rule the state. They were communicating clandestinely on WhatsApp, Snapchat and Signal applications
Cash seized from associates of Opposition party leaders
Rs 70 lakh - belonging to Anand Prasad, Sherlingampally TDP candidate during 2018 general elections at Paradise
Rs 1 crore - at Begumpet during Dubbaka Assembly by-poll in 2020. The cash belonged to a chit fund company based in Siddipet and owned by relatives and associates of BJP candidate Raghunandan Rao
Rs 3.5 crore - seized from a vehicle during Munugodu byelection in 2022 by Task Force inspector Srinath Reddy. Those carrying the cash were said to be associates of BJP candidate Komatireddy Raja Gopal Reddy
Rs 3.35 crore - at TV9 office in Banjara Hills during 2023 Assembly polls from Hanumanth Reddy and Prabhakar, associates of Mahesh Reddy of AMR Infra, a Congress supporter
Rs 1 crore - during 2023 Assembly elections from Mustafa Khanat of Bhavani Nagar, who was associated with a political party
`49 lakh from one Khazil Maliq and others and handed over to Narayanaguda police
Rs 22lakh - during Assembly elections in 2023 from a man identified as Gajenngi Rajkumar of Tarnaka
Rs 15 lakh from a man identified as Gadapa Naresh
