Election speech case: Telangana HC reserves orders on CM Revanth’s plea to quash lawsuit
Election speech case: Telangana HC reserves orders on CM Revanth’s plea
By Newsmeter Network
Hyderabad: The Telangana High Court on Monday reserved its orders on a petition filed by chief minister A Revanth Reddy seeking to quash criminal proceedings initiated against him over his alleged remarks made during the 2024 election campaign.
Private complaint filed by BJP leader
Justice Kunuru Lakshman was hearing the criminal petition filed by Revanth Reddy challenging the proceedings pending before the Principal Special Judicial First Class Magistrate for Excise Cases at Hyderabad. The case arose from a private complaint filed by Kasam Venkateswarlu, the State general secretary of BJP from Nalgonda.
Remarks on reservations sparked a complaint
The complaint alleged that during the ‘Jana Jatara Sabha’ public meeting held on May 4, 2024, at Prakasam Stadium in Kothagudem, Revanth Reddy stated that if the BJP came to power, it would remove reservations for SCs, STs and BCs. Venkateswarlu claimed these remarks were defamatory and violated provisions under Section 499 IPC and Section 125 of the Representation of the People Act.
Petitioner lacks authorisation from party, argues defence
Senior Counsel T Niranjan Reddy, appearing for the chief minister, argued that the complaint itself is not maintainable as Venkateswarlu did not have authorisation from the BJP high command to file such a complaint on behalf of the party. He pointed out that no document or official communication granting such consent had been produced before the court.
Political speeches protected under Constitution
The counsel further contended that the speech in question was a political address delivered during an election campaign, which is protected under Article 19 of the Constitution, guaranteeing freedom of speech. He argued that political speeches and statements cannot be treated as defamatory under the law.
After hearing detailed arguments from both sides, Justice Kunuru Lakshman reserved orders on the petition seeking to quash the proceedings in CC No. 312/2024 pending before the Hyderabad court.
