Siddaramaiah attacks Centre after Rahul, Priyanka detained during protest near PM’s residence

Bengaluru: Former Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Tuesday condemned the detention of Opposition leaders protesting near Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s residence over the alleged police action against students in Delhi, accusing the Centre of attempting to suppress democratic dissent.

In a post on social media platform X, Siddaramaiah strongly criticised the detention of Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Akhilesh Yadav and other Opposition leaders, who he said were holding a peaceful protest.

He also expressed concern over visuals showing Rahul Gandhi and other protesters being allegedly pushed and manhandled by police personnel, describing the scenes as “deeply disturbing.”

The Congress leader alleged that after responding to protesting students with “lathis and tear gas”, the Union government had now turned the police against elected representatives demanding accountability. “This is not the conduct of a confident government but the reaction of one that is afraid of students, questions and peaceful democratic protest,” he said.

Siddaramaiah further said Rahul Gandhi had consistently supported students on issues such as alleged examination irregularities, unemployment and justice, and asserted that detaining Opposition leaders would neither erase students’ grievances nor absolve the Centre of responsibility.

Calling on the Prime Minister to engage with public concerns instead of suppressing dissent, Siddaramaiah said the country’s youth deserved “justice, accountability and respect, not repression.” He added that the Congress would continue to stand with students and support every democratic movement seeking justice.