Harish Rao files defamation petition against Mahesh Goud, Dayakar
BRSLP deputy leader and former Minister T Harish Rao on Thursday filed a criminal defamation petition against TPCC president B Mahesh Kumar Goud and Congress MLC Addanki Dayakar over allegations that he performed black magic and occult rituals. He moved the Nampally court for elected representatives in Hyderabad. The Congress leaders had alleged he visited temples in Karnataka and performed rituals to prevent rains in Telangana. Rejecting this, Rao said his religious beliefs were being politicised and issued legal notices; no apology followed, his lawyer said.
Source
Harish Rao (BRS) · read the original report ↗
Desk check · compared with the source
What the desk checked (4)
- Harish Rao filed a criminal defamation petition against B Mahesh Kumar Goud and Addanki Dayakar on Thursday. — Appears in source; filing details attributed to his lawyer.
- The petition was filed in the Nampally court for elected representatives in Hyderabad. — Stated in source; no court document cited.
- Congress leaders alleged he visited temples in Karnataka and performed occult rituals to prevent rains in Telangana. — Reported as an earlier allegation attributed to the two named leaders; not independently verifiable.
- No apology came within the stipulated period after legal notices were issued. — Attributed to Harish Rao's lawyer in the source.
Analysts’ view opinion
By taking the black-magic allegation to court, Harish Rao has shifted a political slugfest onto legal terrain. This is a two-track strategy: put the burden of proof on his accusers while sustaining a narrative that he is the one being targeted. The Congress leadership is now left with only two options — defend the allegations in court, or step back and absorb the political cost.
- Naming the TPCC president as a respondent lifts this above a personal spat into a direct BRS-versus-Congress confrontation.
- The framing that his religious beliefs are being politicised could win Harish Rao sympathy and help consolidate his own support base.
- The sequence — demand for apology, deadline, then court — looks like a carefully staged move to publicly signal an emphatic denial.
- Coming against a backdrop of rain, crop and farmer concerns, the row pulls debate away from governance and towards personal accusations, which is awkward for the ruling side.
- Litigation as politics cuts both ways; as long as the process runs, the issue stays in the news cycle.
What to watch — Whether the Nampally court takes the petition on file, and whether the Congress leaders stand by their allegations or soften their line, will set the next political direction.
The story establishes none of the following: the truth of the allegations, how the court will respond to the petition, or any formal reply from the Congress leaders named.
Deep dive
Research brief · 7 facts · 3 dates · exam-readyThe brief
Context
T Harish Rao, deputy leader of the Bharat Rashtra Samithi Legislature Party (BRSLP) and a former Telangana Minister, has taken a political spat into court. Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC) president B Mahesh Kumar Goud and Congress MLC Addanki Dayakar had alleged that he visited temples in Karnataka and performed occult rituals to prevent rains in Telangana. Rao says his religious beliefs were politicised to damage his reputation, sent legal notices demanding a public apology, and on failing to get one, filed a criminal defamation petition before the Nampally court for elected representatives in Hyderabad.
Key facts
- On Thursday (report dated 17 September 2026), BRSLP deputy leader and former Minister T Harish Rao filed a criminal defamation petition in Hyderabad.
- The petition names TPCC president B Mahesh Kumar Goud and Congress MLC Addanki Dayakar as respondents.
- The allegation at the centre of the case: that Harish Rao performed black magic and occult rituals to prevent rains in Telangana.
- Congress leaders alleged he visited different temples in Karnataka for these rituals.
- Rao moved the Nampally court for elected representatives in Hyderabad.
- He first issued legal notices demanding a public apology; the petition followed as no apology came within the stipulated period, his lawyer said.
- Rao's stated defence is that his religious beliefs were deliberately politicised to damage his reputation and political standing.
Timeline
- Earlier (date not stated in the source)TPCC president B Mahesh Kumar Goud and Congress MLC Addanki Dayakar allege Harish Rao visited temples in Karnataka and performed occult rituals to stop rains in Telangana.
- After the allegations (date not stated)Harish Rao rejects the allegations, demands a public apology and issues legal notices to both leaders.
- Thursday, as reported on 17 September 2026With no apology within the stipulated period, Rao files a criminal defamation petition in the Nampally court for elected representatives, Hyderabad.
Who has a stake
- T Harish Rao (BRSLP deputy leader, former Minister) — Complainant; seeks to protect his reputation and political standing against allegations he calls a politicisation of his religious beliefs.
- B Mahesh Kumar Goud (TPCC president) — Named respondent in a criminal defamation petition over the occult ritual allegations.
- Addanki Dayakar (Congress MLC) — Named respondent; faces criminal defamation proceedings for the same allegations.
- Nampally court for elected representatives, Hyderabad — Special court that will decide whether to take cognisance of the criminal defamation petition.
- BRS and Congress in Telangana — A political exchange over personal religious practice now shifts to a courtroom, shaping the tone of state politics.
Why it matters
The case shows how political rhetoric touching personal faith and superstition is increasingly settled in criminal courts rather than in public debate. It also spotlights the specialised court for elected representatives in Hyderabad, part of the judicial machinery created to fast-track cases involving legislators. For readers, it raises the recurring question of where free political speech ends and actionable defamation begins.
UPSC angle
Prelims pointers
- T Harish Rao is deputy leader of the BRS Legislature Party (BRSLP) and a former Telangana Minister.
- B Mahesh Kumar Goud is president of the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC); Addanki Dayakar is a Congress MLC.
- The petition was filed in the Nampally court for elected representatives, Hyderabad.
- Criminal defamation cases are typically preceded by legal notices seeking a public apology, as in this case.
- MLC stands for Member of Legislative Council, the upper House of a bicameral state legislature.
- The allegation involved temples in Karnataka and rituals said to prevent rains in Telangana.
Mains framing
The dispute between Harish Rao and the two Congress leaders illustrates a wider trend in Indian politics: allegations that touch personal religious practice or superstition are made in the political arena and then contested as criminal defamation. The immediate cause here is the claim that Rao performed occult rituals in Karnataka temples to prevent rains in Telangana, which he rejects as a deliberate politicisation of his faith aimed at damaging his reputation and standing; the procedural cause of the court case is the absence of a public apology despite legal notices. The implications are twofold. First, criminalising political speech can chill legitimate criticism, while unrestrained allegations about private belief can injure reputation, a facet of personal dignity. Second, the recourse to a dedicated court for elected representatives signals institutional attention to legislator-related cases but also risks courts being drawn into everyday partisan combat. A grounded way forward, based only on what this episode shows, lies in political parties exercising restraint in attributing motives to religious observance, in preferring apology and retraction mechanisms over prolonged litigation, and in timely judicial handling so that such petitions do not linger as instruments of political pressure.
Key terms
- BRSLP
- Bharat Rashtra Samithi Legislature Party, the party's group in the legislature; Harish Rao is its deputy leader.
- TPCC
- Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee, the state unit of the Congress party, headed by B Mahesh Kumar Goud.
- Criminal defamation petition
- A complaint before a criminal court alleging that statements have damaged one's reputation, seeking penal action rather than only damages.
- MLC
- Member of the Legislative Council, the upper House of a state legislature; Addanki Dayakar holds this post.
- Court for elected representatives
- A designated court in Hyderabad, at Nampally, that handles cases involving elected representatives.
Practice questions
- Should criminal defamation remain available to politicians for statements made in political debate, or does it chill free speech? Discuss with reference to recent instances.
- Examine the rationale for special courts dedicated to cases involving elected representatives. Do they improve accountability or add to judicial burden?
- Political allegations touching personal religious practice raise questions of dignity, faith and free expression. Critically analyse.
Grounded only in the source report — figures and dates are the source's, not inferred.