Two journalists arrested over ‘derogatory’ video on Telangana CM

Telangana Police arrested two journalists, Pogadadanda Revathi and Thanvi Yadav, on Wednesday for allegedly posting abusive content against Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy. Officers also detained a third person, who shared the video on X under the username NippuKodi.

The arrests followed a complaint from the state Congress’s social media chief. Police charged the accused with publishing obscene material, criminal conspiracy, spreading rumors, and provoking unrest. Authorities confirmed that all three remain in custody.

The controversial video was allegedly recorded at Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) headquarters in Hyderabad. It featured a Pulse News reporter interviewing a person who made abusive remarks about the CM. Police said the content was “highly provocative” and aimed at defaming the leader.

Congress leaders accused Pulse TV of deliberately spreading propaganda. Police stated that the two journalists had a history of “social media trolling” and confirmed two previous cases against them. A court has remanded them to judicial custody for 14 days.

Additional Commissioner of Police P. Viswaprasad said the video was filmed in February at BRS headquarters and released on March 10. He claimed it was part of a coordinated effort to insult the CM ahead of the budget session. “The content is vulgar, derogatory, and insulting. The accused repeatedly post such videos for fame and views. We have evidence of financial incentives from BRS. We will investigate further,” he said.

Police plan to identify and charge the person who made the abusive comments in the video. Officers also revealed that the YouTube channel, operational for two months, incited people to hurl abuses at the CM.

Reacting to the arrests, BRS leader KT Rama Rao accused the Congress of intolerance. He called the situation a return to “a state of Emergency” in Telangana, posting his concerns on X.