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Telangana IAS officer questions if action was taken against all who shared AI image of 400-acre land
Sabharwal, who was served notice as a witness, observed that the image in question was reshared by 2,000 people on the social media platform ‘X’
Senior Telangana IAS officer Smita Sabharwal, on Saturday, said that she gave a detailed statement to the Gachibowli police regarding the reposting of an AI-generated image of a 400-acre land at Kancha Gachibowli, next to the University of Hyderabad.
She also asked if the same action was being taken against everyone who shared the image.
Sabharwal, who was served notice as a witness, observed that the image in question was reshared by 2,000 people on the social media platform ‘X’.
"Have fully cooperated with Gachibowli police authorities, and given my detailed statement today as a law abiding citizen under BNSS Act. The post was reshared by 2000 individuals on this platform. I sought clarification on whether the same action is initiated for all!," she said in a post on 'X'.
Sabharwal, who is posted as the Principal Secretary of Youth Affairs, Tourism, and Culture of the Telangana government, said that ‘selective targeting’ compromises the principles of natural justice and equality before the law.
“If the same action is not taken, it raises concerns about 'selective targeting', which in turn compromises the principles of natural justice and equality before the law,” she added in her post.
The Cyberabad Police have issued a notice to the senior IAS officer over the reposting of the AI-generated image and sought information from her regarding the case of creating and circulating "misleading" content on social media platforms regarding the land parcel.
The Telangana government's plans to develop IT infrastructure and other things in the 400-acre land, tree felling, and alleged threat to wildlife there met with protests by the University of Hyderabad Students Union. The matter is also being heard by the Supreme Court.
What did the police say about the notice issued to IAS officer Smita Sabharwal?
IAS officer Smita Sabharwal reposted an image featuring earthmoving machines, two deer, and a peacock on March 31. The said image was originally shared by another social media handle on the social media platform 'X'.
"A notice was issued under Section 179 BNSS on April 12 to the IAS officer. It is a notice to elicit some information as a witness," a police official had told PTI on April 16.
Cases were earlier registered regarding the posting of some images on social media. In that regard, to find out what exactly she posted and from where she got it, the notice was issued seeking information, police said.
Police have booked cases following complaints that "misleading" content was created, posted, and circulated on social media platforms.
The complainants alleged that the content was maliciously intended to cause public unrest and provoke the student community and agitating groups to breach public peace by morphing photos and videos related to the land with unverified information.
