Telangana tourism secretary Smita Sabharwal on Saturday appeared before the Gachibowli police authorities in response to the notice given under BNSS 179 for sharing the image of a Ghibli-styled art on her ‘X’ handle on Kancha Gachibowli. However, a defiant Sabharwal again questioned on the social media platform whether similar action was taken against all the 2,000 people who shared the same AI-generated post, or was it a case of selective targeting? A BRS leader, Krishank, meanwhile, alleged that the complaint, based on which Sabharwal was questioned, did not even mention her.
Soon after appearing before the police, Sabharwal took to her ‘X’ handle to write, “Have fully cooperated with Gachibowli police authorities and given my detailed statement today as a law-abiding citizen under the BNSS Act.” She then added, “The post was reshared by 2000 individuals on this platform. I sought clarification on whether the same action was initiated for all! If not, this raises concern about selective targeting, which in turn compromises the principles of natural justice and equality before the law.”
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BRS leader Krishank alleged that it was an example of a “classic false case” since the complainant didn’t even mention the ‘X’ handle, which had originally posted the Ghibli-style image or Sabharwal, who had only shared it. “Then why did the police drag her specifically into this Kancha Gachibowli forest case just for retweeting?” asked Krishank. Sabharwal was posted in the chief minister’s office during the days of the BRS government but was shunted out. She was later brought back as tourism secretary and is currently in charge of holding the Miss World Pageant.
Sabharwal, who does not believe in mincing her words on key issues, was served the notice by the Gachibowli police for reposting the AI-generated Ghibli art image of a peacock and a deer standing face to face to a fleet of bulldozers with the iconic mushroom rock in the background. Although the government was pulled up in the Supreme Court over the Kancha Gachibowli case, it has blamed AI-generated images circulated widely for the outrage among the citizens across the country. The police approached the High Court over the issue and also sent notices to political leaders and even to the serving IAS officer.
Krishank on Saturday also shared a statement by 67 former IAS, IPS, and IFS officers under the Constitutional Conduct Group, urging the Congress government to protect the Kancha Gachibowli land and expressed concern over mortgaging it for Rs 10,000 crore.