Phone Tapping a Body Blow to Self-Respect of People: Bhatti

Hyderabad: The tapping of phones during the previous BRS ruled government in Telangana state did not just violate the right to privacy of the people and abused a law that was enacted to protect the interests of the country, but also delivered a body blow to the self-respect of people of Telangana whose lives were intruded upon with impunity by the previous government, Deputy Chief Minister Mallu Bhatti Vikramarka said on Friday.

He said what happened in the phone tapping case was an "extremely dangerous thing." An Act drawn up for the security of the country, was used to get into the private lives of people. This robbed the people the rights granted to them under the Constitution, he said.

Bhatti was responding to questions at a meet the press event on Friday organized by the Telangana Union of Working Journalists in the city.

"This must be condemned. There are so many reports of intrusion into private lives, many reports of blackmail in the phone tapping case. For the people of Telangana, self-respect is very important. It is the basis for the struggle for a separate state. The society here believes in its right to freedom of expression more than others," he said.