Tadepalli, Sept 17: The repressive Red Book governance of Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu and Minister Nara Lokesh has now crossed Andhra Pradesh’s borders. After targeting Opposition leaders and local media, their government is reportedly attempting to silence national journalists and independent media organisations.
Emails sent by X Corp to The News Minute Editor-in-Chief Dhanya Rajendran and Alt News co-founder Mohammed Zubair reportedly revealed takedown requests originating from the Andhra Pradesh Police. The controversy deepened after X clarified that a request sent from an official police email address had been wrongly identified as coming from the “FBI” because an Andhra Pradesh police officer had entered the US Federal Bureau of Investigation’s name as the organisation. “The News Minute reported on the disputed request”
These notices clearly expose how the Andhra Pradesh Police are allegedly being reduced to political instruments in the hands of Chandrababu Naidu and Nara Lokesh. Misrepresenting the police as the FBI while seeking the removal of journalists’ posts is not merely ridiculous; it is a grave abuse of authority and an assault on press freedom.
Journalists, intellectuals and democratic voices have rightly condemned these disturbing tactics. The government must disclose who authorised the requests, which posts were targeted and under what law. Chandrababu Naidu and Lokesh must answer why the police machinery is being used to intimidate journalists. Democracy demands answers, not takedowns.
