Two women journalists from Telangana, facing potential arrest over social media posts deemed critical of Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, have approached the Supreme Court for relief. Pogadadanda Revathi, Managing Director of Pulse News, and Thanvi Yadav, a reporter with the same news channel, have challenged an order from the Telangana High Court related to their case.
The case stems from a video posted on Pulse News's X (formerly Twitter) account. The video featured a reporter interviewing an individual who allegedly made abusive and derogatory remarks against Chief Minister Revanth Reddy. A complaint was subsequently filed by the Congress party's state social media head.
Revathi and Yadav were initially arrested in March by the Hyderabad Police's Cyber Crime division. They were later granted bail with the condition that they appear before the police twice a week. According to their advocate, Revathi has been taken into custody again, despite having been out on bail for the past seven months. The lawyer also stated that her entire office has been seized.
The matter was brought before Chief Justice of India Bhushan Ramkrishna Gavai, who has agreed to list the case for hearing on Thursday, October 16, 2025.
The initial arrests in March sparked controversy, with some condemning the action as a violation of press freedom. Revanth Reddy, while expressing outrage over the remarks in the video, stated that he would not overstep any boundaries. He also accused the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) of orchestrating the video, alleging that it was filmed in their party office. BRS leaders, in turn, met with the journalists and asserted that their arrest was an attack on the freedom of the press.
Following their initial arrest, a local court granted bail to Revathi and Yadav, rejecting police custody. The court directed them to surrender their passports and appear before the police twice a week for 90 days. Advocates for the journalists argued that the arrests were politically motivated and violated Supreme Court guidelines. They also alleged mistreatment of the women by the police.
The Editor's Guild of India has also voiced concerns regarding the arrests. K T Rama Rao, a BRS MLA, claimed that the Congress government has jailed as many as 11 journalists since assuming office in December 2023. Pulse Digital, Revathi's YouTube channel, had aired a clip of a farmer criticizing the government's failure to fulfill election promises.
