Andhra Pradesh police, on Wednesday, February 26, arrested Tollywood actor and YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) leader Posani Krishna Murali in connection with a case booked for alleged derogatory comments against Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan and Minister Nara Lokesh. A team of Andhra Pradesh Police arrested Posani from his residence at My Home Bhuja apartments in the Raidurg area in Hyderabad. The actor raised an objection to the police action. However, the team whisked him away.
Posani was booked by police in different districts during the last few months. In November 2024, the Crime Investigation Department (CID) in Andhra Pradesh registered a case against Posani on a complaint by Bandaru Vamsikrishna, a leader of Telugu Yuvatha, the youth wing of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP). The complainant said that Posani made false allegations and defamatory comments against Chandrababu Naidu during a press conference in September. He alleged that the actor’s comments tarnished the image of the Chief Minister. He also claimed that the comments created discord between groups.
Posani, who also served as AP Film Development Corporation Chairman when YSRCP was in power, has been booked under sections 111 (organised crime), 196 (promoting enmity between different groups), 353 (statements conducing to public mischief), 299 (deliberate and malicious acts, intended to outrage religious feelings of any class), 341 (making or possessing counterfeit seal, etc.), 336 (3) (forgery) of Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS).
Earlier, a case was registered against Posani in Kadapa district for making alleged derogatory comments against Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan and IT Minister Nare Lokesh. A case was registered at RIMS Police Station in Kadapa on a complaint by some TDP leaders. Jana Sena leaders in Rajahmundry also lodged a complaint against Posani for the alleged derogatory comments he made against Pawan Kalyan and his family members.
Cases were booked against him in Kadapa, Chitttoor, Tirupati, Anantapur, Palnadu and Bapatla. The coalition government of TDP, Jana Sena and BJP has been taking action against YSRCP social media activists and its supporters who had posted derogatory content against TDP and Jana Sena leaders when YSRCP was in power.