ktr-serves-defamation-notice-to-union-min-bandi-sanjay-kumar

Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) Working President, KT Rama Rao, has issued a legal notice to Union Minister Bandi Sanjay Kumar over alleged defamatory comments. The comments relate to the "illegal phone tapping" case that occurred during the previous BRS government.

The notice, dated August 11 and released to the media on Tuesday, was sent by Rama Rao's lawyer. It claims that Sanjay Kumar, the Union Minister of State for Home, made false, defamatory, and slanderous statements that implied Rama Rao was involved in phone tapping.

"At the outset, our client states that allegations made by you (Sanjay Kumar) are misplaced without proof and reek of your mala fide intention to tarnish the reputation, image and goodwill of our client," the notice read. It further alleges that Sanjay Kumar's clear intention was to make these defamatory statements to further his political gains at the expense of Rama Rao’s reputation.

The notice asked Kumar to tender an unconditional apology to the BRS Working President and to refrain from engaging in any alleged further malicious or frivolous defamatory acts against the latter and his family members.

 

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The notice said Rama Rao would be constrained to initiate legal action against Kumar, including but not limited to civil and criminal, if he failed to comply with the demand to tender an unconditional apology within seven days of receipt of the notice.

Sanjay Kumar, who appeared as a witness before the SIT in the illegal phone tapping case in Telangana, on August 8, called for the investigation to be transferred to the Central Bureau of Investigation.

The Union Minister hit out at former Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao and also Rama Rao on the allegations of phone tapping, claiming that his phone was tapped by following the procedure used for surveillance of Maoist activities.

The BRS leader and Sanjay Kumar were engaged in a war of words on August 8 following the latter's allegations.

Following Sanjay Kumar’s allegations, Rama Rao publicly demanded an apology and stated that a legal notice would be served. In response, the Union Minister dismissed the threat as "monkey tricks" and dared the BRS leader to "bring it on".