Jagan aide Pudi Srihari gets bail in Guntur after third arrest in two weeks
Synopsis
Pudi Srihari, YSRCP media chief and journalist with 26 years of experience, has been arrested three times in two weeks over social media posts against AP CM Chandrababu Naidu — each time securing bail, only to face a fresh FIR in a new jurisdiction. The cycle has become a constitutional flashpoint over press freedom and police overreach in Andhra Pradesh.
Key Takeaways
Pudi Srihari , YSRCP General Secretary (Media) and former CPRO to Jagan Mohan Reddy , was granted bail by a Guntur court on 1 May 2025 .
This was his third arrest in two weeks , beginning with his first detention in Vijayawada on 15 April .
Each time bail was granted, police registered a fresh FIR on the same allegations and re-arrested him.
The AP High Court suspended a trial court's earlier release order; the Supreme Court declined to intervene.
YSRCP has accused the TDP -led government of political vendetta and misuse of police power.
Srihari alleged the government is treating journalism as an organised crime .
A court in Guntur on Friday, 1 May 2025 granted bail to Pudi Srihari, a senior aide of former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, in a case linked to allegedly abusive social media posts featuring morphed images of incumbent Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu. The development came after Srihari's third arrest in two weeks, drawing sharp condemnation from the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) and reigniting debate over press freedom and political persecution in the state.
A Timeline of Three Arrests
Srihari, who serves as YSRCP General Secretary (Media Department) and is a former Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) to Jagan Mohan Reddy, was first arrested on 15 April in Vijayawada over the social media posts. He was subsequently shifted to Kuppam, where a separate case had been registered against him and fellow YSRCP functionary Girish Kumar Reddy. A trial court released him on 16 April after rejecting the police's remand petition.
The Andhra Pradesh High Court subsequently suspended that release order. After the Supreme Court declined to intervene, Kuppam police re-arrested Srihari in Bengaluru on 29 April and produced him before a Kuppam court on 30 April, where he was again granted bail.
The Third Arrest and Fresh FIR
Hours after the Kuppam court's bail order on Thursday night, a team from Kothapeta in Guntur district arrested Srihari and transported him to Kothapeta police station, where a fresh First Information Report (FIR) was registered against him on the same allegations. The Guntur court subsequently granted bail on 1 May.
Tension was reported at Guntur Government Hospital, where police prevented YSRCP MLC Lella Appireddy from meeting Srihari ahead of his court production.
What Srihari Alleged
Addressing media at the YSRCP office in Guntur, Srihari — a working journalist with a reportedly 26-year career — expressed deep anguish over the repeated arrests. He alleged that the Telugu Desam Party (TDP)-led coalition government is treating journalism as an "organised crime" and warned that portraying media coordination as a criminal syndicate is "alarming and dangerous for democratic functioning." He stated he had done no wrong and had no fear.
YSRCP Accuses Government of Political Vendetta
YSRCP General Secretary (Legal) Ponnavolu Sudhakar Reddy termed the episode a battle between constitutional values and misuse of power, questioning how a person can be arrested multiple times for the same alleged offence. He noted that courts had repeatedly rejected remand attempts and intervened against what the party characterised as unconstitutional police action.
The YSRCP has formally accused the TDP-led coalition of political vendetta, framing the successive arrests as an attempt to suppress opposition voices. With bail now granted for the third time, the legal contest is expected to continue in higher courts, and the case has emerged as a significant flashpoint in the deepening political rivalry between the YSRCP and the ruling TDP in Andhra Pradesh.
Point of View
Bail, fresh FIR, repeat. Courts have now intervened multiple times, yet the cycle continues — raising serious questions about whether police are acting within constitutional bounds or using procedural tools to achieve extrajudicial detention. For a state with a history of sharp political polarisation between the YSRCP and TDP, this risks normalising the weaponisation of FIRs against journalists and political workers. The Supreme Court's refusal to intervene in the High Court order adds a layer of legal complexity that the opposition will likely escalate further.
NationPress
2 May 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Why was Pudi Srihari arrested multiple times?
Pudi Srihari was arrested over allegedly abusive social media posts featuring morphed images of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu. Each time a court granted him bail, police registered a fresh FIR on the same allegations in a different jurisdiction and re-arrested him — a cycle that occurred three times in two weeks.
What is the legal status of Pudi Srihari's case as of 1 May 2025?
A Guntur court granted Srihari bail on 1 May 2025, his third bail in two weeks. The AP High Court had earlier suspended a trial court release order, and the Supreme Court declined to intervene, leaving the legal battle unresolved.
Who is Pudi Srihari?
Pudi Srihari is the YSRCP General Secretary (Media Department) and former Chief Public Relations Officer to ex-AP Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy. He is also a working journalist with a reported 26-year career.
What has the YSRCP said about the arrests?
The YSRCP has accused the TDP-led coalition government of political vendetta and misuse of power. YSRCP General Secretary (Legal) Ponnavolu Sudhakar Reddy questioned how a person can be arrested repeatedly for the same alleged offence and called the police actions unconstitutional.
What did Srihari allege after his release?
Srihari alleged that the TDP-led government is treating journalism as an organised crime. Speaking at the YSRCP office in Guntur, he said he had done no wrong and expressed anguish over repeated arrests despite a spotless 26-year journalism career.
