The spotlight upon the Telugu Superstar Allu Arjun is not taking a break, be it the humongous success of his recent movie Pushpa 2 or him being at the centre of the tragedy at Sandhya Theatre which claimed a life.
On 24th December, the Hyderabad Police grilled the Telugu superstar for four long hours in connection to the stampede that took place during the premiere of his movie Pushpa 2 earlier this month on 4th December. The stampede claimed the life of M Revathi, a 39 year old woman and left her nine-year-old son critically injured.
The Telugu superstar, Allu Arjun was summoned on the 23rd of December in connection with the tragedy. He arrived at the Chikkadpally police station, where he was interrogated by a team led by Central Zone DCP Akshansh Yadav.
The tragic stampede at Hyderabad’s Sandhya Theatre on December 4, 2023, has unleashed what appears to be a coordinated series of actions and even ‘attacks’ against the Telugu superstar. Both the state machinery, political leadership and hooligans taking increasingly aggressive stances against Allu Arjun. Following the death Revathi during the Pushpa 2 premiere, authorities swiftly filed cases under Sections 105 and 118(1) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. It list the actor as accused number 11 despite his role being limited to that of the film’s star rather than an event organizer.
The actor’s initial response was one of cooperation and concern. On December 6, he released a three-minute video expressing deep regret and announced a Rs 25 lakh donation to the victim’s family, along with a commitment to cover all medical expenses for her hospitalized son. However, this conciliatory approach was met with targeted smear campaign from the Congress government and its supportive ecosystem.
The situation took a dramatic turn on December 13 when police officials arrived at Allu Arjun’s Jubilee Hills residence, allegedly barging into his private quarters. This was an unusual approach to arrest a public figure, especially when he had shown willingness to cooperate. Despite requesting time for breakfast and to change, the actor was hurriedly taken into custody. Though the Telangana High Court granted him interim bail on a Rs 50,000 bond that same day, prison officials delayed his release citing various procedural reasons, forcing the superstar to spend a night sleeping on the prison floor. While the country has witnessed the twisting of laws in the favour of VIPs, and VVIPs, the uncanny stern application of law and the tyranny in the garb of procedural reasons against a VVIP stinks of vindictive approach against Allu Arjun.
The targeting of Allu Arjun became all the more obvious when on December 21, AIMIM MLA Akbaruddin Owaisi came out against the Telugu Superstar. In a bid to tarnish his image, Owaisi alleged that Allu Arjun, upon hearing about the stampede and Revathi’s death, reportedly said, “Now the movie will be a hit.”
Pushpa-2 movie showcased excellent scenes of Hindu Gods, thus upheld Sanatana Dharama throughout!!
Even Allu Arjun had publicly declared PM Modi is his inspiration
This has caused severe burn to many & the result -Owaisi lying on Sandhya theatre tragedy & Congress arresting… pic.twitter.com/f5YunW0OpT
— Mahesh Vikram Hegde 🇮🇳 (@mvmeet) December 22, 2024
The provocative statement sparked outrage against the actor, and became a reason for hooligans to launch violent attacks on the actor’s residence. The incident led to the detention of eight individuals, with one of them being identified as an aide to Chief Minister Revanth Reddy.
Furthermore, Telangana CM Revanth Reddy fueled the controversy by alleging that Allu Arjun refused to leave the cinema hall even after learning about the death, insisting on holding a roadshow despite the police’s instructions.
A day later the Hyderabad Police released CCTV footage from Sandhya Theatre to support the claim of Telangana CM Reddy.
The controversy continued to spiral. On December 23, police summoned Allu Arjun for questioning which on 24th followed for more than 4 hours.
Initially, there were speculations and two plausible theories of his arrest being part of a PR stunt or him being targeted at the hands of Congress government, to send a chilling message to film stars to toe their line and not ride the saffron, pro-Hindu, pro-nation wave.
In the backdrop of sour taste at the hands of Bollywood ‘celebs’, the initial response could have titled towards the act being a manufactured publicity stunt in order to gain attraction of the crowd which will eventually pull more audience. But the co-ordinated targeting of the Telugu star with the entire state machinery coming to picture including the Chief Minister of Telangana and AIMIM leader Akbaruddin Owaisi chipping in, the ‘PR’ conspiracy angle seems to be a lesser plausible theory.
The continuous targeting of Allu Arjun by a particular political lobby points out at the intention of getting hold of the Telugu film industry. It must be noted that the Telugu Movie industry, unlike Bollywood, has gained respect for not resorting to propaganda and Hinduphobic agendas. This might be the biggest motivation behind the Congress ecosystem which survives on Hinduphobic politics to get control of the industry.
In the wake of attack on his house, the escalating situation forced Allu Arjun to move his children, Ayaan and Arha, to a secure location on December 23, as police issued yet another summons.
The pressure campaign continued through December 24, with Arjun appearing at the Chikkadapally police station for a three-hour interrogation. Throughout this sequence of events, several patterns have emerged suggesting coordinated action: the unusual approach to his arrest despite his cooperative stance, the synchronized timing of political statements and police actions, the strategic release of investigation details to support political narratives, the connection between protesters and political figures, and the continued pressure through multiple summons and questioning sessions.
While the tragic death of Revathi absolutely warrants a thorough investigation, the pattern of events suggests a systematic targeting that extends beyond normal procedural requirements, raising questions about whether this case has transformed from a crowd management investigation into something more politically motivated.
