Telangana Minister Seethakka sends defamation notice to KCR over 'phone scam' allegations
Apr 13, 2026
Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], April 13 : Telangana's Minister for Women and Child Welfare Danasari Anasuya Seethakka has issued a legal notice for defamation to Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) President K Chandrashekar Rao (KCR), alleging a coordinated social media campaign linking her to corruption claims over smartphone procurement for Anganwadi workers.
The notice was sent in response to recent social media posts accusing the minister of corruption regarding the purchase of smartphones for Anganwadi workers.
As per the legal notice sent by Seethakka, the minister has taken strong objection to a series of posts circulated on X and Facebook, which allegedly accused her of irregularities in the purchase of mobile phones under a government welfare initiative.
The notice states that a post attributed to BRS-linked handles on April 10, 2026, at 11:30 am read: "Congress is not ineligible for corruption. Minister Sitakka did not leave even the phones given to Anganwadi workers. The cost of the Samsung A06 phone given to Anganwadi is only Rs 199. But Sitakka who showed the cost of one phone is Rs 14-499 and committed corruption of Rs 30 crores. # CongressstootingTelangana."
It further alleged that similar content was circulated by multiple accounts, including "Telugu Scribe" (posted at 2:39 PM), BRS spokesperson Dr. Krishank (12:17 PM), and other Facebook handles such as DKCR Army, Sabithamma Social Media, and KCR Fans Club, within a span of a few hours.
The legal notice contended that these posts form part of a "systematic campaign to defame" the minister and asserts that KCR, as BRS President, is responsible for party-linked communications, including social media content, press releases, and advertisements.
Seethakka has also clarified in the notice that she has "nothing to do with the procurement of the smart mobile phones," stating that the tender process was handled by Telangana Technology Services Limited. The notice added that the bids were evaluated by a Tender Evaluation Committee comprising senior government officials, and the minister was not part of the committee or the procurement process.
The notice further alleged that the accused "without even conducting due diligence came to the conclusion" that she was responsible for awarding the tender and causing alleged losses of Rs 30 crores. It also questioned the basis of the financial figures cited in the posts, calling them "prima facie false and baseless."