People posing as journalists to post “vicious campaigns” against public representatives and their family members “should be stripped and paraded in public”, Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy said Saturday, calling for strict legal action against such online content.
The remarks come after two women journalists — Revathi Pogadadanda and Thanvi Yadav — were arrested this week over a video they had posted on their YouTube channel. The CM has accused the rival Bharat Rashtra Samithi of paying them to record the video and post it online.
Speaking on the Motion of Thanks to the Governor’s address, Reddy said he was upset over abusive posts against him, his family, and other public representatives.
“It’s time to define who is a journalist and a law should be passed to prevent vicious online campaigns by those posing as journalists,” Reddy said, urging media organisations, media associations, information and PR departments, and authorised news agencies to define and identify legitimate journalists so they are exempt from such state action.
The CM attacked the BRS, which had boycotted the session, saying that rival party had condemned the arrest of the women journalists who had posted “derogatory and abusive content” about his family members.
“This online abuse cannot be tolerated anymore. My blood boils at the kind of language they are using against women. Those who post such content will be stripped and paraded in public. They have no right to abuse any woman,” he said.
The BRS, he claimed, was upset “when police took action by filing cases and arresting” the two journalists.
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“Will BRS leaders tolerate the kind of vulgar language they used if it is done to their women family members? The language used in the video posted by the women is shocking. It is not in Telangana’s culture to use such language. These days anyone is starting a YouTube channel and saying and posting anything they like. Criticising political leaders is one thing but going after their family members will not be tolerated anymore,’’ the CM said.
In the video, a farmer is purportedly seen abusing the CM, his mother, and Congress for allegedly not receiving welfare benefits.
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
