MUMBAI: The Hyderabad High Court in an order passed on 26 September regarding the two cases lodged against Telugu news channel Zee 24 Gantalu has asked the police to combine the two FIRs in one.  

Two cases were filed against the channel for airing a video that had shown DGP V Dinesh Reddy going to two godmen and asking for their blessings. The DGP claims the video was morphed. The other case was filed by the Muslim godman, who claims that the channel called him a ‘black magician’.

The channel says he has misinterpreted the words. The actual words it used were ‘mantra gaadu’ which means someone who performs mantras.

The case that the DGP has lodged will be clubbed with the one that the Baba had lodged.

Additionally, the court has also ordered the police to resist from arresting journalists of Zee 24 Gantalu without any prima facie evidence. Two journalists had been arrested by the police earlier and remanded in custody for two days. They are now on bail.

The staff of the channel has taken anticipatory bail including the editor K Siva Prasad. He says that the bail is still valid because the bail was applied for the case one and now the second case will also be clubbed in the first case.

 “We are ready to fight the case,” says Prasad.