Telugu actor Vijay Deverakonda booked below SC/ST Act for derogatory remarks towards tribals

Telugu actor Vijay Deverakonda has been booked below the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act by the Raidurgam police for allegedly making derogatory remarks towards tribal communities throughout a public occasion.

The case was booked following a grievance filed by Nenavath Ashok Kumar Naik, State President of the Joint Motion Committee of Tribal Communities, citing the feedback made by the actor on April 26, 2025, in the course of the pre-release occasion of the movie Retro.

In keeping with the First Data Report (FIR), seen by The Hindu, the actor allegedly referred to tribal individuals as missing intelligence and customary sense and likened them to Pakistani terrorists. “He insulted their tribal group by saying that they’d overwhelmed them 500 years in the past with none intelligence and minimal frequent sense. Furthermore, he made feedback evaluating them to Pakistani terrorists,” the complainant stated.

Attaching the YouTube hyperlink within the written grievance, Mr. Naik said that these feedback weren’t solely offensive however deeply insulting to the dignity and self-respect of the tribal group. He stated that the content material was shared throughout a number of media channels, together with YouTube by way of Sithara Leisure’s channel, drawing widespread criticism.

Investigation is below method.

In the meantime, earlier in Might, the SR Nagar police registered a case below the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act towards Vijay, claiming his feedback have been deeply offensive and amounted to demeaning the tribal inhabitants. Shortly later, the actor launched a press release on his X account, clarifying that “there was no intention to harm or goal any group, particularly our Scheduled Tribes, who I deeply respect and think about an integral a part of our nation.”

“I used to be talking about unity – about how India is one, our individuals are one, and the way we should transfer ahead collectively. In what world would I, whereas urging us to face as a rustic, intentionally discriminate towards any group of Indians – all of whom I see as my household, like my brothers,” the actor’s assertion learn.