Bureaucrat Faces Heat : Telengana’ s Governance Row Turns Cinematic

Poonam Sharma

In a bizarre collision of art, activism, and administrative authority, Telangana’s top IAS officer Smita Sabharwal is under fire for simply reposting a ‘Ghibli-style’ AI-generated image on social media—an act that has now drawn legal scrutiny. The whimsical artwork, which subtly criticized the deforestation near Hyderabad Central University in the Kancha Gachibowli area, depicted JCBs threatening nature, as deer and peacocks looked on helplessly. It was a soft protest. But the state saw red.

Telangana Police served Sabharwal notices under Section 179 of the newly minted Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), citing interference in an ongoing land row. The move has raised eyebrows, especially since Sabharwal is seen as a legacy officer of the previous BRS government and a long-time aide of ex-CM KCR. Now posted in a relatively obscure position under the Congress-led Revanth Reddy regime, her repost has turned into a flashpoint—pitting art against authority, and legacy against politics. Has it triggered national debate: Can civil servants express themselves artistically? Can ministers in Telengana treat public servants like personal staff?

While Telangana’s government faces Supreme Court criticism over the Gachibowli deforestation, it chooses to go after a bureaucrat’s social media post this expose a troubling trend: rising intolerance toward dissent—be it digital, visual, or simply silent. As bureaucracy is throttled by political vendetta and art is policed like activism, the boundaries between governance and authoritarianism blur.

In a state  where trees fall silently and power screams unchecked, even a cartoon and a handshake can become state matters.