Congress leaders in the State held a flash protest at Freedom Park on Thursday evening, against the alleged manhandling of party leader Rahul Gandhi by the Uttar Pradesh police while he was going to Hathras to meet the family of gang-rape victim.
Hundreds of Congress workers, led by Leader of the Opposition in the Assembly Siddaramaiah and KPCC president D.K. Shivakumar, held a torchlight protest. The two leaders and hundreds of other Congress workers were detained by the police and later released.
Mr. Shivakumar tweeted condemning the police action and termed it an “assault”.
Mr. Siddaramaiah also tweeted that the police action only showed the panic of Yogi Adityanath-led BJP government in U.P.
Meanwhile, in a series of tweet, JD(S) leader and former Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy condemned the U.P. police action. “This behaviour of UP police on the eve of birth anniversary of advocate of non-violence Mahatma Gandhi is an effort to suppress the weapon of protest in a democracy,” he said in a tweet.