HYDERABAD: Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy has been granted interim exemption from personal appearance in a defamation case pending before the special court for public representatives in Nampally. However, the Telangana High Court declined to stay the proceedings in the case.
The case stems from a political statement made by Revanth Reddy during a public meeting held last year in Kothagudem, Khammam district, as part of the Lok Sabha election campaign. BJP leader Venkateshwarlu filed a criminal petition against Reddy, alleging that he had made baseless accusations claiming the BJP would abolish reservations if it came to power. According to the complaint, these statements damaged the BJP’s public image.
In his petition filed before the High Court, Revanth Reddy argued that political speeches do not constitute grounds for defamation. He also cited multiple Supreme Court judgments in support of his plea.
After hearing arguments from both sides, the High Court postponed the next hearing to 12 June. Meanwhile, in the Nampally court, the BJP submitted audio and video recordings of Revanth Reddy’s speech as evidence, and Venkateshwarlu’s statement has been officially recorded.
