HYDERABAD: Condemning the arrests of NTV journalists, BRS working president KT Rama Rao on Wednesday asked AICC leader Rahul Gandhi, “Where is your Mohabbat ki Dukaan?”
Taking to X platform, he said: “Strongly condemn the arrest of three journalists during the festival. Congress rule in Telangana reminds one of Emergency days. It is unfortunate how @TelanganaDGP is hell-bent on treating journalists like criminals.
You could have served them notices and called them for an investigation. Going into journalists’ homes in the dead of the night is definitely a stretch! I demand 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?”
In another X post, Rama Rao said: “Dear @RahulGandhi, I hope you are taking note of how the Telangana branch of your ‘Mohabbat ki Dukan’ is trampling upon constitutional rights of citizens. Last night, three journalists were abducted by state police.
In one instance, police broke open the doors of a journalist’s home. This was a case with only bailable sections, where the police could have simply issued a BNSS Section 35 notice. Such repression on media and digital media has now become the hallmark of your colleague Revanth Reddy’s rule in Telangana! #CongressFailedTelangana”
CM trying to take control of media houses: Harish
Meanwhile, former minister T Harish Rao alleged that by arresting journalists, the chief minister was trying to take control of all the media houses.
Speaking to reporters, the Siddipet MLA alleged that the chief minister was blackmailing the media. “Revanth Reddy once said that he wanted to slap journalists. Now, he took revenge,” he alleged and questioned why journalists were arrested in the night, that too on a festival day.
Stating that journalists were not terrorists or financial offenders who looted banks, he said, “Among the three arrested journalists, one was on leave and went to Sabarimala when the said news was telecast,” and wondered why he was picked up by the police late in the night.
The BRS leader also said, “It’s shameful on the part of the chief minister for trying to file an SC and ST case against Sudheer, a Dalit journalist”.
Condemning the police attitude, Harish Rao said that the Hyderabad Police Commissioner should wear the Congress kanduva (scarf).
“When a minister made defamatory comments against KTR, what action did police take? Why was an SIT not constituted then,” he asked.