High Court Upholds Withdrawal of Jalagam Prasada Rao Security Cover

The Telangana High Court in Hyderabad has upheld the decision to withdraw the government-provided personal security cover of former Andhra Pradesh minister Jalagam Prasada Rao. Ruling on the matter, the court established that such state-provided security is not an absolute or permanent right once a threat perception ceases to exist.

Justice T Madhavi Devi dismissed the writ petition filed by Rao, which had challenged the withdrawal and sought to restore his security. The judge ruled that the decision to withdraw the protection was based on an objective assessment of the prevailing threat perception and therefore did not warrant any judicial intervention from the court.

According to the court's observations, both the Security Review Committee and the Khammam Commissioner of Police had carefully examined the threat perception reports. These reports were submitted by police authorities, who also reviewed representations made by the petitioner himself before concluding that there was no active threat to his life.

Rao had challenged the withdrawal of his security cover, contending that it had been discontinued without justification. He argued that earlier court directions had successfully restored his protection. He also argued that his family had long faced threats from extremist groups because of his father, the former Chief Minister Jalagam Vengala Rao. To further support his case, the petitioner referred to threatening WhatsApp messages that he allegedly received in 2024.

Opposing the plea, Government Pleader for Home Mahesh Raje submitted that the latest intelligence inputs did not indicate any specific threat to the petitioner.

By dismissing the former minister's writ petition, the High Court legally established that state-provided security is contingent upon objective threat assessments by authorities and cannot be claimed as a permanent right by individuals.