A Hyderabad court has granted bail to two women journalists, Revathi Pogadadanda and Thanvi Yadav, who were arrested for allegedly sharing content critical of Telangana Chief Minister A Revanth Reddy. Revathi is the managing director of Pulse Digital News Network, while Thanvi is an employee of the organization.
Their lawyer, Jakkula Ramesh, argued that their arrest was politically motivated and that the police acted under pressure. The prosecution opposed the bail request, stating that further investigation was necessary.
Despite the prosecution’s arguments, the court approved bail. The journalists were directed to submit two sureties of Rs. 25,000 each. They are expected to be released from Chanchalguda Special Prison for Women by Monday evening.
Earlier, the court ruled that Section 111 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) was not applicable in this case. Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate G. Anusha stated in a March 12 order that there was no evidence of financial transactions or other necessary factors to justify invoking this legal provision.
During the remand hearing, defense lawyer Jakkula Laxman argued that Section 111 was too harsh for the alleged offenses. He also pointed out that the other charges carried a maximum sentence of less than seven years, making immediate arrest unnecessary and politically motivated.
