BRS leaders booked for attack on Telugu news channel office

Hyderabad, June 29 (IANS) A case has been filed against BRS leaders in connection with the attack on the office of Telugu news channel 'Maha News', Hyderabad police said on Sunday.

Bharat Rashtra Samithi student wing President Gellu Srinivas Yadav has also been arrested for Saturday’s incident.

A case has been registered under Bharat Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) sections 331(5), 331(7), 109(1), 118(1), 126(2), 324(5), 324(6), 351(3), 79 r/w 3(5).

Police also booked cases against former Speaker Madhusudhana Chary and former MP Balka Suman for trying to resist the arrest of Srinivas Yadav from BRS headquarters, Telangana Bhavan.

A case was registered against them at Banjara Hills Police Station for allegedly preventing police from discharging their duties.

A group of people allegedly linked to the BRS attacked the office of ‘Mahaa News’ in Jubilee Hills on Saturday. They vandalised vehicles and caused damage to the channel's premises.

Armed with sticks and stones, the assailants also caused injuries to several staff members.

The ruling Congress condemned the attack and blamed the BRS for the same. Telangana unit President Mahesh Kumar Goud on Sunday visited the office of the news channel and expressed solidarity with the journalists and the staff members.

Talking to media persons, he slammed BRS for the phone tapping during its regime. He stated that there is no chance that phone tapping happened without the knowledge of then Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao (KCR) and then state minister K.T. Rama Rao (KTR). He questioned KCR’s silence over the issue.

Goud asked why the BRS government had to tap the phones of film celebrities. He said that the phone-tapping resulted in rifts in their families. He alleged that phones of not just political leaders but also those of their family members, celebrities, judges, and women officials were tapped.

Condemning the attack on the ‘Maha News’ office, he said that the media has the responsibility to tell the public the truth. "Various kinds of reports came against us in your paid channels, but we never resorted to physical attacks," he said.

The Congress leader alleged that KTR was instigating goons to carry out the attack and justified the same.

KTR, the BRS Working President, has criticised a bulletin aired by the channel in a post on social media.

"Some lowlifes masquerading as journalists running media houses have been spewing venom on me and my party leadership since the last few months While I hardly care for their opinions or existence, the repeated attacks of character assassination are taking a toll on my family, friends and party colleagues I will be taking legal action on each and everyone of them. And I am fully aware of who is behind these organised attempts, will deal with them appropriately," the BRS leader had posted on Saturday.

--IANS

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