'Is it a crime to raise voice of Dalits?': Priyanka Gandhi questions Bihar govt after Rahul Gandhi 'stopped' by police

NEW DELHI: Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Thursday asked the Bihar government if raising the voice of Dalits is a "crime," after her brother and Lok Sabha leader of opposition Rahul Gandhi was allegedly stopped from attending an event in Darbhanga .

"Stopping the Leader of Opposition Shri Rahul Gandhi ji, who was going to interact with the students under the 'Shiksha Nyay Samvad' program at Ambedkar Hostel in Darbhanga, is a very shameful, condemnable and cowardly act," she wrote in a post on X.

"The JDU-BJP coalition government, which is bent on dictatorship, should tell whether it is a crime for the leader of opposition to go to Bihar or is it a crime to raise the voice of Dalits, backward, deprived and poor? The people of Bihar, the land of justice and revolution, will not tolerate this dictatorship," the Wayanad MP added.

दरभंगा के अंबेडकर हॉस्टल में 'शिक्षा न्याय संवाद' कार्यक्रम के तहत छात्रों से संवाद करने जा रहे नेता प्रतिपक्ष श्री राहुल गांधी जी को रोकना अत्यंत शर्मनाक, निंदनीय एवं कायराना कृत्य है।

तानाशाही पर उतारू JDU-BJP गठबंधन की सरकार को यह बताना चाहिए कि क्या बिहार में नेता प्रतिपक्ष…

— Priyanka Gandhi Vadra (@priyankagandhi) May 15, 2025

Earlier in the day, Gandhi alleged he was stopped by the Bihar Police while he was on his way to Ambedkar Hostel. He accused the central government of opposing democracy, the Constitution, and the minorities.

"The Bihar Police tried to stop me. But they could not because your power is watching over me. We told PM Narendra Modi that you have to conduct (caste) census... Under your pressure, PM Narendra Modi announced caste census in the country. Scared of your pressure, he placed the Constitution on his forehead. But their government is against democracy, the Constitution, and the minorities. This is the government of Adani-Ambani and not yours," Gandhi said, addressing the gathering in Darbhanga.

Also Read | 'Rok sako to rok lo': Rahul Gandhi's message to PM Modi, Nitish Kumar in Bihar

In a post on X, the Rae Bareli MP and ex-Congress chief asked Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar if dialogue is a "crime in the state."

भारत लोकतंत्र है, संविधान से चलता है, न कि तानाशाही से!

हमें सामाजिक न्याय और शिक्षा के लिए आवाज़ उठाने से कोई नहीं रोक सकता। pic.twitter.com/ksbynJvTqG

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) May 15, 2025

बिहार में NDA की "डबल इंजन धोखेबाज़ सरकार" मुझे अंबेडकर हॉस्टल में दलित और पिछड़े छात्रों से बातचीत करने से रोक रही है।

संवाद कब से अपराध हो गया? नीतीश जी, आप किस बात से डर रहे हैं? क्या बिहार में शिक्षा और सामाजिक न्याय की स्थिति छुपाना चाहते हैं? pic.twitter.com/olYioTyeB1

— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) May 15, 2025

"NDA's 'Double Engine Dhokebaaz Sarkar' in Bihar is preventing me from interacting with Dalit and backward students in Ambedkar Hostel. Since when has dialogue become a crime? Nitish ji, what are you afraid of? Do you want to hide the state of education and social justice in Bihar? India is a democracy, it is run by the Constitution, not by dictatorship! No one can stop us from raising our voice for social justice and education" he stated.