Amit Shah ‘deepfake’ video: Telangana CM, others, seek more time to appear before Delhi police

NEW DELHI: The legal counsel for Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy and four other leaders, who have been summoned by the Delhi Police in connection with the ‘deepfake video’ case involving Union Home Minister Amit Shah, have sought more time for appearance via email.

The counsel expressed the inability of their clients to comply with the Delhi Police summons in connection with the ongoing probe into the ‘doctored’ video.

The Delhi Police had issued a summons to the Telangana CM and others as part of the ongoing inquiry into the circulation of an alleged fake video in which the Union Home Minister is purportedly heard saying that the BJP stands against reservations. The BJP, thereafter, flagged the viral clip as fake and accused several Congress leaders in the south state of circulating it.

The notice served by the Delhi Police asked CM Reddy and four others to appear at 10.30 am on May 1, along with their mobile handsets and laptops for forensic examination. However, according to sources, the lawyers representing the Telangana CM and others requested more time, saying they would not be able to appear on the scheduled date.

Summoning the Telangana CM and the others earlier in connection with the ‘fake’ video case, the police said it is to be seen who joins the investigation in person and who sends their responses via email on May 1. Based on their submissions or responses, the probe will be taken forward, the officers informed.

Earlier, the Intelligence Fusion and Strategic Operations (IFSO) unit of Delhi Police issued summons to 16 individuals across 7-8 states in connection with the case. The summons were issued under Sections 91 and 160 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CrPC), asking the persons concerned to join the investigation and provide relevant documents and electronic devices as evidence.

According to police sources, those summoned include six members of the ruling Congress in Telangana, including Chief Minister Revanth Reddy. They, along with other persons from several states, were asked to appear for questioning on May 1 at the IFSO unit in Delhi’s Dwarka. The CrPC Section 160 allows police to summon a person for investigation, while Section 91 allows police to seek specific documents or gadgets to be presented as evidence.

The Assam Police on Monday arrested Reetom Singh, the first person to be arrested in connection with the ‘doctored’ video case, sources said. It is alleged that the video clip was shared by several Congress leaders.

Earlier, the BJP’s Telangana unit filed a complaint against CM and the Congress’ state chief Revanth Reddy at the Cyber Crime police station, accusing the party of fabricating and morphing the speech of Amit Shah.

The complaint stated that the Telangana Congress Pradesh Congress Party, on its official X handle, posted a ‘morphed’ and ‘fabricated’ video of Amit Shah.

During his address at a public meeting in Congress-ruled Telangana, Shah said, “If the BJP forms the government here, we will withdraw the unconstitutional reservations to Muslims here. We will ensure that the SCs, STs and OBCs get quotas as guaranteed under the Constitution.”

Revanth Reddy was asked to appear before Delhi Police’s IFSO unit (Cyber Unit) on May 1 along with his mobile phone. (ANI)