Shivakumar Condemns FIR Against Rahul Gandhi, Calls It “Political Harassment”

Bengaluru, Dec 2025 : Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister and State Congress President D.K. Shivakumar on Monday criticised the FIR filed against Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi in connection with the National Herald case, alleging that the action reflects the Union government’s “vindictive politics.” He asserted that Rahul Gandhi would not retreat from raising critical national issues, even if jailed.

Speaking to reporters at Vidhana Soudha, Shivakumar accused the Central government of “misusing investigative agencies” to target the Congress leadership. “This is unfair. There is a limit to how much anyone can be harassed. There is no need to harass Rahul Gandhi in this case,” he said.

Shivakumar emphasised that the National Herald institution does not personally belong to Sonia Gandhi or Rahul Gandhi. “They served as Congress Presidents and were custodians of the institution’s shares. Even the Chief Minister and I are Presidents of various boards and corporations, and typically one or two shares are registered in our names during our tenure. Once the tenure ends, those shares are transferred. Likewise, our leaders carried forward the responsibility of National Herald as a tradition dating back to Jawaharlal Nehru,” he explained.

He further stated that entities such as Young Indian and the National Herald had already been declared as party assets. “None of this is their personal property. They are merely custodians on behalf of the Congress party. These decisions were taken collectively over the years, including during the time of Morarji Desai and Ahmed Patel,” he added.

Shivakumar reflected on the party’s leadership challenges in the late 1990s, recalling how senior Congress leaders had urged Sonia Gandhi to take charge when the party was facing a crisis under Sitaram Kesari. “After she assumed leadership, the party governed successfully for 10 years, and India witnessed another decade of Congress rule with an economist leading the nation,” he said.

He alleged that the current actions against Rahul Gandhi are motivated solely by political vendetta. “Now, this is being done only to harass us politically. Even if they send Rahul Gandhi to jail, he will not be shaken. This politics of hatred by the Central government is wrong,” he said. Shivakumar warned that such actions only erode the moral standing of the Union government. “Let us do politics among the people. Let us fight in elections. But using investigative agencies to harass someone like this is unacceptable.”

Calling the FIR “political torture,” he said it stemmed from “jealousy” and would ultimately weaken the BJP’s ethical standing. “Rahul Gandhi never cared about such developments. He does not care even if he is sent to jail. It’s not good for democracy. Vindictive politics will only demoralise the BJP’s moral values,” he added.

Chief Minister Siddaramaiah also reacted sharply, stating that the BJP was indulging in political revenge against the Congress leader. He asserted that such tactics would not deter the Opposition from raising people-centric issues in Parliament and beyond.

Team Maverick