YSRCP to Approach Centre Over FBI Reference in Andhra Police Takedown Request

The YSR Congress Party has said it will take up with the Centre the appearance of the US Federal Bureau of Investigation's name in a social media takedown request linked to the Andhra Pradesh Police. The party plans to raise the matter with the Ministry of External Affairs and other central agencies.

At the centre of the row is a request to X concerning posts tied to an incident in Guntur. According to party chief and former Andhra Pradesh chief minister YS Jaganmohan Reddy, the platform initially told users that the request had come from the FBI. X later clarified that the request had been submitted through an official Guntur Urban Police government email address and was not sent by the American agency, attributing the FBI reference to information entered in the request.

A senior Guntur police official in Amaravati described the reference as a clerical error and an inadvertent mistake, saying there was no intention to misrepresent the identity of the Andhra Pradesh Police.

Reddy said his party would seek clarification from central authorities on the circumstances that led to the reference. In a post, he asked whether the episode amounted to policing or state-sponsored deception aimed at politically motivated harassment, and called it a deplorable act that tarnishes the reputation of the state and the country.

The YSRCP has demanded that the Andhra Pradesh Director General of Police explain who authorised the request, the legal basis for it, the relevant FIR numbers and sections invoked, the posts allegedly in violation of the law, and whether any court had ordered their removal.

The party has argued that the episode raises questions about freedom of expression and the treatment of journalists, Opposition leaders and social media users who are critical of the government.