Editors Guild asks Telangana Govt not to muzzle Press

Even as Hyderabad Police questioned the Editor-in-Chief and four other staff members of Outlook magazine in connection with a criminal case filed by an IAS officer Smitha Sabharwal, Editors Guild has urged the Telangana Government to show restraint in dealing with the case and desist from undemocratic course.

The team of Outlook officials including Editor-in-Chief Krishna Prasad, Executive Editor Bishwadeep Moitra, Hyderabad correspondent Madhavi Tata, Business President Indranil Roy and cartoonist Sahil Bhatia were questioned by the police officials about the motive behind publishing the story in question.

Smitha Sabharwal, a key officer in the secretariat of Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao, and wife of an IPS officer Akun Sabharwal had lodged a criminal complaint against the magazine after it published what she termed a derogatory piece in its column ‘Deep Throat.’Though the story did not name the officer, she said that it had hurt her feelings and reputation and sought an action against the editor and the writer of the piece.

The magazine staff was accompanied by their lawyer during the questioning at the Central Crime Station of Hyderabad police. The police officials wanted to know how they got the idea of writing the piece about the officer of CM’s Peshi. The investigating officers quizzed the cartoonist about the depiction of the IAS officer in western outfit on a ramp.

Madhavi Tata was hiding ever since the matter came to light as she was receiving threatening calls and messages. The Telangana Government had also cancelled her accreditation.In a letter to the Governor ESl Narasimhan, editor of the magazine Krishna Prasad had expressed concern over the threats and sought his intervention.

Referring to these actions, Editors Guild President N Ravi in a statement demanded an end to the abuse and intimidation of Madhavi Tata, Outlook’s assistant editor in Hyderabad.“The Editors Guild of India is concerned over the attempt to intimidate the Press through abuse of power and gross overreaction to the publication of an insensitive piece in Outlook magazine,” the statement said.