Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy lashed out at the use of abusive language against his family in the name of political criticism. He threatened to “strip” and “parade” such offenders on the streets. He also proposed amendments to laws governing media freedom and redefining who qualifies as a journalist in the era of online journalism.
Speaking about the arrests of two journalists—Revathi Pogadadanda and Thanvi Yadav—in the Assembly on Saturday, March 16, he stressed the need to establish clear criteria for identifying journalists. The two journalists were arrested by the Hyderabad cybercrime police for sharing a clip of a farmer abusing Revanth Reddy, his mother, and the Telangana Congress, alleging that the state government had failed to provide adequate welfare.
“Anyone is setting up a YouTube channel and saying what they like… My blood boils at that language against family members. I say this as Chief Minister, I will strip each of them and parade them on the streets. Since we are political and public figures, you can criticise and analyse our actions. But why attack women in our families?” Revanth Reddy said.
He also criticised Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leaders, accusing them of orchestrating the filming of such abusive videos, allegedly from their party office, and questioning them for condemning the journalists’ arrests.
“They are bringing paid artists to their party office, recording them, and posting on social media. Now that police have filed cases against them, it hurts you… I ask the people condemning the arrests over Twitter posts… if they speak like this about your mother, wife, or sister, would you tolerate it?” CM Revanth asked.
He urged journalists’ unions to provide a list of accredited journalists, stating that they would be treated differently from those engaged in online journalism without official recognition. “Give us a list of journalists. And define the term ‘journalist.’ You decide what punishment should be given to those who are on the list and commit wrongdoing. Those who aren’t on that list will not be considered journalists; they will be considered criminals,” CM Revanth said, adding that individuals practicing journalism without official accreditation would undergo additional scrutiny.
“If they come in a guise, we will remove that guise, strip them, and beat them up. I too have pride. I will do everything in accordance with the law. All punishments will be as per law,” he said.
The Chief Minister also suggested amending existing laws or drafting new legislation to regulate media freedom and social media use. “I’d like to discuss this in the House for a day. Let’s discuss with journalist associations and frame a law… We will amend laws if needed,” he said.