Hyderabad, Jan 14 (PTI) Two journalists of a Telugu TV news channel were on Wednesday arrested here in connection with a case related to alleged broadcast of defamatory content against a woman IAS officer, police said.
The two journalists were arrested for allegedly telecasting “highly inappropriate and scandalous” content targeting the IAS officer, a senior police officer told PTI.
The BRS and the BJP hit out at the Congress government in Telangana over the arrests of the journalists and demanded their “immediate” release.
The FIR was registered against certain news channels and other media outlets following a complaint by the Telangana IAS Officers’ Association accusing them of “publishing and telecasting false, fabricated and baseless content” on the IAS officer.
Earlier in the day, the police detained three journalists of the channel for questioning. Two journalists were later arrested while one of them was let off, police said.
One of the arrested journalists, while being taken away in a vehicle by police personnel, told the media that “this is an illegal arrest and we will approach the court”.
The Telangana Police on January 12 formed a Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate the case.
Hyderabad Police Commissioner V C Sajjanar on Wednesday told reporters that those summoned as part of investigation should appear and cooperate with the police.
The police are proceeding as per the law, he said. “Law will take its own course.” Sajjanar in a post on ‘X’ said: “Criticism and scrutiny are part of public life. But maligning any woman— be she a public servant, a professional in the private sector, or a homemaker— through words, TV stories, or social media is not criticism; it is cruelty. It is unacceptable, and it must be condemned without hesitation by everyone.” He further said the recent deliberate targeting of women officers through character attacks is deeply troubling— it is personal, damaging, and utterly unacceptable.
Meanwhile, Union Minister for Coal and Mines G Kishan Reddy strongly condemned the “illegal” arrest of the journalists and demanded their release.
In a post on ‘X’, BRS working president K T Rama Rao said: “I strongly condemn the arrest of three journalists during the festival.” “The Congress rule in Telangana reminds me of Emergency days every single time. It is unfortunate how @TelanganaDGP is hell bent on treating journalists like criminals,” he said.
Rama Rao demanded the immediate release of the arrested journalists.
“None of the sections are non-bailable, so why did the Telangana police decide to terrorise the journalists and their families with these midnight arrests. I request Telangana DGP to follow the due legal process and not play into dirty politics of the Congress party and its lousy leadership,” he said.
Senior BRS leader T Harish Rao also took to ‘X’ and said: “This is an attack on democracy by the Revanth Reddy government. We demand the immediate release of the arrested journalists.” Telangana BJP president N Ramchander Rao strongly condemned the “midnight arrest” of three journalists, calling it a “direct and dangerous assault” on press freedom and democratic values in the state.
In a statement, Rao said that the BJP stands firmly with the media fraternity and will not allow the Congress government to “crush press freedom through intimidation and misuse of state machinery”. PTI VVK GDK HIG KVK KVK
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.