Priyanka Gandhi raises concerns about police action against protesting LPST rank-holders in Keralam capital

Thiruvananthapuram All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary and Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Thursday expressed concern over the United Democratic Front (UDF) government’s controversial use of police force against All Kerala Primary School Teacher (LPST) rank-holders association activists on an indefinite strike for employment in front of the Secretariat for the past 130 days. Ms. Vadra, a high-profile public face of the ongoing Jantar Mantar agitation demanding the exit of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged voters’ list fraud, told reporters in Wayanad that citizens should zealously guard their constitutionally guaranteed right to protest peacefully.

Notably, Ms. Vadra was among the scores of INDIA bloc leaders who violated the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led Central government’s restriction on Jantar Mantar rallies and courted arrest. “People have the right to protest in democracies.

However, if there is excessive violence causing injuries, the police reserve the lawful right to restore public peace and law and order,” she said.