Charges have been filed under Sections 406, 420 and 499 of the Indian Penal Code

Two persons have been arrested in Bengaluru for allegedly using abusive language aimed at Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy and members of his family following the result of a general election that saw Janata Dal (Secular) win only one of 28 seats; their alliance partners Congress did not fare any better, while the BJP claimed 25 seats.

The arrest comes at a time when five people have been arrested for allegedly "defaming" Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, triggering a huge debate on social media on freedom of expression.

The two accused, Sidharaju, 26, and Chama Gowda, 28, recorded a 32 second-long video clip on a mobile phone, in which the Chief Minister and his son, Nikhil Kumaraswamy, were targeted. The video was later uploaded to Facebook.

Charges have been filed under Sections 406 (criminal breach of trust), 420 (cheating) and 499 (defamation) of the Indian Penal Code.

The arrests come a fortnight after a first information report (FIR) was filed against senior Kannada journalist Vishweshwar Bhat over an article detailing strife between members of former Prime Minister and JDS chief HD Deve Gowda's family.

The article in question, which Mr Bhat claimed was based on credible sources, Nikhil Kumaraswamy, son of the Chief Minister, created a ruckus in a Mysore hotel after failing to get elected from the Mandya Lok Sabha seat; he lost the seat to an Independent candidate - actress Sumalatha Ambareesh.

A South Indian actress Ms Ambareesh won the high-profile Mandya seat by a margin of 1,25,876 votes - an unexpected win in what was widely considered a Janata Dal (Secular) bastion.

The Editors Guild of India had strongly defended Mr Bhatt in its statement, calling the FIR "an effort to intimidate the press and stifle freedom of expression".