AP High Court Adjourns Hearing on Ram Gopal Varma's Petition to December 2

The Andhra Pradesh High Court has adjourned the hearing on filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma's petition to December 2, 2023. The adjournment follows a request from the government lawyer, who stated that the Advocate General would present arguments on Varma's petition. In his filing, Varma contends that several cases have been registered against him illegally based on his posts on X (formerly Twitter). He is seeking an order to prevent further registrations of cases related to these posts and has also requested that the cases already filed be quashed.

On the same day, three additional petitions for anticipatory bail regarding the already registered cases are expected to be brought before the court.

Varma faces charges from multiple police stations across the state, including Maddipadu in Prakasam district, Tullur in Guntur district, and Ravikamatham in Anakapalle district. Reports indicate that he has been untraceable following a non-appearance for the hearing related to the Maddipadu police case, prompting six police teams to conduct an active search for him. Despite this, Varma released a defiant video on November 27, asserting that he is not afraid.

The controversy surrounding Varma originated in March this year when activists from the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) and Jana Sena filed complaints against him. These complaints targeted Varma's social media posts that were deemed inappropriate and offensive toward political figures such as Chandrababu Naidu, Pawan Kalyan, and Lokesh, coinciding with the promotion of his film "Vyuham." Varma has maintained that the complaints are baseless, stating that individuals unrelated to the issues raised have filed grievances regarding posts made over a year ago, leading to the current charges against him.