DK Shivakumar, Siddaramaiah condemn detention of Rahul Gandhi, Opposition leaders

Bengaluru: Chief Minister DK Shivakumar and Congress Working Committee (CWC) member Siddaramaiah on Tuesday condemned the detention of Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and other Opposition leaders during a protest near the Prime Minister's residence in New Delhi.

The Karnataka Congress leaders said reports and visuals of Gandhi and other protesters being pushed and manhandled were "deeply disturbing", accusing the Centre of suppressing democratic dissent.

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"When a government fears questions more than injustice, it resorts to intimidation. Detaining the Leader of the Opposition instead of listening to the voices of the people is a shameful attack on the very spirit of democracy," Shivakumar said in a statement.

"The Congress party will not be silenced. We will continue to stand firmly for justice, democracy and the rights of every citizen," he added.

In a separate statement, Siddaramaiah said the Modi government had responded to young Indians with "lathis and tear gas" and was now using the police against elected representatives seeking accountability.

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"This is not the conduct of a confident government. It is the reaction of a government increasingly afraid of students, questions and peaceful democratic protest," he said.

Siddaramaiah said Gandhi had consistently stood with students on issues such as examination irregularities, unemployment and injustice. Detaining Opposition leaders would neither erase the suffering of students nor absolve the Union government of responsibility, he added.

"The Prime Minister must stop using police force to silence dissent and start answering the country. India's youth deserve justice, accountability and respect — not repression," Siddaramaiah said.

He added that the Congress would continue to stand with students and "every democratic voice demanding justice", asserting that "you may detain the Opposition, but you cannot detain the truth or the anger of India's youth."