DSP accused in phone tapping case set to be demoted to inspector

In what is being described as ’side effect’ of telephone tapping case, second accused D. Praneeth Kumar, Deputy Superintendent of Police under suspension, is likely to be demoted as Inspector. 

A sub-inspector of 2007 batch, Mr. Kumar, also known as Praneeth Rao, was shifted to the Special Intelligence Branch (SIB) in 2018 in the rank of Inspector. Before joining SIB, he served in Nalgonda district. Five years after his stint with SIB, he got elevated as DSP through ‘accelerated promotion’ which is extended to police officials for commendable performance in anti-Left wing extremist operations.

There is no direct connection between his elevation as DSP through ‘accelerated promotion’ and the telephone tapping case, the accelerated promotion angle cropped up when the police officials probing the telephone tapping case began analysing different aspects of the case like why the prime accused and former police officer T. Prabhakar Rao specifically chose Mr. Praneeth Rao and others to eavesdrop on the phones of others. 

Mr. Prabhakar Rao was heading the SIB, while on extension of service following retirement, when the proposal for promoting Mr. Praneeth Rao as DSP was taken.  Investigators, after questioning both of them, surmise that Mr. Praneeth Rao was ‘gifted’ with accelerated promotion as DSP though his work did not meet the standards applied to other police officers in such matters. 

Interestingly, a serving DSP M. Gangadhar (who eventually quit and entered politics by contesting for MLC) questioned Mr. Praneeth Rao’s promotion by writing open letters to State police chief and Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy. When police officials probing telephone tapping case dug deeper, they found that Mr. Praneeth Rao’s promotion was not in compliance with the parameters or standards adhered to in accelerated promotions awarded to other police officers. 

Though Mr. Gangadhar challenged similar promotions awarded to three other police officers, the case of Mr. Praneeth Rao assumed importance because of his alleged complicity in telephone tapping case. The investigators reportedly submitted a report to the higher-ups pointing out the discrepancies in the accelerated promotion of Mr. Praneeth Rao. 

“This has raised many issues relating to awarding accelerated promotions. Hopefully, the government would strictly adhere to procedures and justify all such pending proposals, if any,” said a police officer unwilling to be named.