Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Mar 12: The Congress government in Telangana is under attack from the opposition, particularly the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) after the “emergency-type” arrests of two journalists in the wee hours of Wednesday for posting an alleged controversial video showing a farmer criticising the incumbent Congress regime.
The journalists Pogadadanda Revathi, the Managing Director of Pulse News, and Thanvi Yadav, a reporter for the same channel – were arrested by Hyderabad Police’s Cyber Crime division from their residences in Telangana’s capital city while a third individual – the user of an X account titled ‘NippuKodi’ – has also been detained. They were allegedly arrested for posting a “controversial” video of a farmer on YouTube and social media platforms. In the clip, the farmer spoke about his hardships under the Congress regime.
According to reports, senior journalist Revathi and her colleague Tanvi Yadav were arrested around 5 am. The arrest in the wee hours has triggered outrage, with BRS and BJP leaders condemning the Revanth Reddy government for its “authoritarian tactics.”
All the three were taken into custody after a complaint from the chief of the Congress’ state social media unit, and face serious charges – from publishing obscene material to organised crime and criminal conspiracy, spreading rumours to incite hatred, and provoking a breach of peace.
The complaint is about a video on the X account in which a Pulse News reporter interviews an individual, who allegedly makes “derogatory” and “abusive” remarks about the Chief Minister. This, it was argued, constituted a “highly provocative” post, one has the potential to incite violence and is a “deliberate attempt by Pulse TV to defame and spread propaganda.”
The arrests have, instead, provoked fierce criticism from the opposition BRS, which was in power before the Congress’ big surprise win in 2023. Its chief and former chief minister KT Rama Rao accused the Congress of being “intolerant of criticism” and allowing an “extreme level of intolerance.” “It feels like a state of Emergency’ has returned in Telangana…” he declared.
The early morning raid, he said, reminded him of the Emergency era actions of the Congress. “The arrest of journalists for merely posting a video of a farmer speaking about his hardships is the peak of dictatorial governance. Where is press freedom in this so-called ‘constitutional rule’ that Rahul Gandhi talks about?” he asked, demanding the government to immediately stop to such suppressive actions. In a long X post this morning, Mr Rao claimed Ms Revathi had been arrested illegally, which included police raiding her home at 5 am and showed the Congress’ “Emergency-style rule.”
The BJP IT cell chief Amit Malviya also condemned the arrest and said, “Revanth Reddy seems to have mistaken his rise to the Chief Minister’s office for the coronation of a monarch.” “Telangana police arrested senior journalist Revathi P, who reports for PulseTV, at 5am this morning. There is no justification for this illegal detention, regardless of the reason. This is dictatorship—an outright assault on press freedom. This isn’t the first time Congress has hunted down journalists who ask uncomfortable questions or expose the truth.
“In Rajasthan, they misused their government to target and harass multiple journalists simply for doing their job. Revanth Reddy seems to have mistaken his rise to the Chief Minister’s office for the coronation of a monarch. KCR also had similar misgivings. People of Telangana will soon put him in place. India’s inherent impulse is democratic and it despises such highhandedness,” he said on X.
The BJP’s Shehzad Poonawalla slammed the Congress for arresting a senior journalist for the “crime” of “showing the frustration and plight of the farmers of Telangana.” NV Subhas, Telangana BJP spokesperson and Narasimha Rao’s grandson, also expressed shock at the “midnight crackdown on press freedom.”
Senior BRS leader T Harish Rao questioned whether Telangana was under democracy or a dictatorship, while BRS MLC K Kavitha said anyone who dares to question Revanth Reddy’s rule, faces taunts, threats, or arrests.
“This government responds to uncomfortable questions with arrests. Revathi’s 5 AM arrest exposes the deep insecurity and cowardice of Congress. I strongly condemn this shameful attempt to silence voices and suppress press freedom,” Harish Rao said.
Incidentally, Ms Revathi was arrested in a similar manner when the BRS was in power. Minutes later the BRS leader targeted Mr Gandhi in a separate post and threw in a sarcastic jibe at the Congress leader carrying a red-bound copy of the Constitution while campaigning.
