Mohan Babu booked for attacking TV reporter

Hyderabad, Dec 11 (IANS) Police have registered a case against veteran Tollywood actor Mohan Babu for attacking a television journalist at his residence on Tuesday night.

Pahadi Shareef Police Station registered a case under Bharat Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) Section 118 (1) (causing hurt with dangerous weapons or substances).

According to police, the FIR was registered on a complaint by M. Satyanarayana, a reporter for Telangana news channel TV9.

Mohan Babu attacked the TV reporter when the latter had gone to his residence in Jalpally to cover the ongoing dispute between the veteran actor and his actor son Manchu Manoj.

The reporter stated in his complaint that when Manchu Manoj and other journalists went into the house at his invitation, Mohan Babu confronted them aggressively, used abusive and foul language, grabbed the mike and attacked him with it. This resulted in severe head injury.

The incident occurred when Manchu Manoj broke the gate to enter the house after an argument with the bouncers deployed there. Along with Manoj and his private security men, some journalists also entered the house.

When the TV 9 reporter asked a question to Mohan Babu about the dispute with his son, he got enraged, grabbed the mike and attacked the reporter with the mike. The journalist fell to the ground. The bouncers drove out all the journalists out of the house.

The injured reporter was admitted to a hospital in Shamshabad. According to doctors, he has suffered three fractures in the zygomatic bone (cheekbone) and needs plastic surgery.

Meanwhile, journalists staged a protest in front of the Film Chamber office and demanded action against Mohan Babu. They demanded that an attempt to murder case be registered against him.

The journalists also demanded that Mohan Babu’s family be expelled from Movie Artists Association (MAA), the apex body of Tollywood. Mohan Babu’s elder son and actor Manchu Vishnu is the president of MAA.