HC adjourns hearing on Telangana CM's petition to quash case over poll speech

Hyderabad, April 25 (IANS) The Telangana High Court on Friday adjourned hearing on the petition filed by Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy, seeking quashing of a case filed against him over alleged defamatory remarks made during the Lok Sabha elections campaign last year.

The Chief Minister, in his petition, contended that there is no defamation in political speeches. He cited rulings given by the Supreme Court in various cases.

The High Court, which took up the hearing on Friday, adjourned the hearing to June 12.

A BJP leader filed a case against Revanth Reddy for making defamatory remarks against the BJP during a speech at Kothagudem on May 4, 2024.

BJP state General Secretary Kasam Venkateshwarulu alleged that Revanth Reddy made inflammatory statements suggesting that the BJP, if voted to power, would abolish SC, ST and BC reservations.

Venkateshwarulu termed the speech a deliberate attempt to mislead and provoke voters belonging to these communities.

He argued that the Chief Minister violated Section 499 of the IPC and Section 125 of the Representation of the People Act, 1951.

The complainant also alleged that the Congress leader’s remarks defamed the BJP and created enmity and hatred among people.

The case is currently pending in the Nampally Public Representatives Court here. Venkateshwarlu submitted audio and video recordings of the Chief Minister’s speech to the court. It also recorded the complainant’s statement.

The Chief Minister approached the High Court, seeking the quashing of the case. He argued that the complaint is baseless, and politically motivated.

Revanth Reddy also contended that the complainant allegedly spoke about a morphed video. The High Court was informed that complaints regarding the morphed video were lodged in several police stations, including the Telangana Cyber Crime Police Station, and an investigation was on.

The Chief Minister argued that if the video in which Amit Shah spoke about reservations was morphed, then there is no case against him.

The High Court exempted the Chief Minister from personal appearance in the Nampally Court. It, however, refused to grant a stay on the proceedings in the lower court.

--IANS

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