Three journalists associated with the Telugu news channel NTV were detained by the Telangana police late on Tuesday (January 13, 2026) in connection with a controversial programme aired by the channel that involved a woman IAS officer and a Telangana Minister. Officials, however, have not formally confirmed their arrest as of Wednesday afternoon.
The police action comes days after the Telangana Government ordered a probe into the telecast. Five days after the programme went on air, a Special Investigation Team was constituted under the leadership of V. C. Sajjanar, Hyderabad Police Commissioner, to investigate the matter.
The late-night detentions triggered sharp political reactions accusing the Congress government of targeting the media. Bharat Rashtra Samithi working president, K. T. Rama Rao, criticised the police action. “I strongly condemn the arrest of three journalists on a festival day. The Congress rule in Telangana is reminiscent of the Emergency days,” he said.
The former Minister demanded their immediate release, saying, “None of the sections are nonbailable. So why did the Telangana police decide to terrorise the journalists and their families with these midnight arrests.”
“I request Telangana DGP to follow the due legal process and not play into dirty politics of Congress party and its lousy leadership,” he said.
