Democracy in chains, says Navjot Singh Sidhu after walking out of jail

Soon after walking out of the Patiala Central Jail on Saturday, Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu slammed the Centre, alleging that democracy is in chains and institutions have turned slaves in the country.

He also claimed that a conspiracy is being hatched to impose the President's Rule in Punjab.

Sidhu described Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann as "akhbari mukhmantri" and criticised his government over law and order and debt issues.

Sidhu, who spent about 10 months in jail in connection with a 1988 road rage death case, walked out free on Saturday. The former Punjab Congress president was sent to prison in May 2022 after being sentenced to one-year rigorous imprisonment by the Supreme Court over the death of Gurnam Singh, 65.

His lawyer previously said Sidhu was being released earlier because of his good conduct in prison.

"Whenever dictatorship came in the country, a revolution came and today, I say the revolution's name is Rahul Gandhi," Sidhu told reporters who had been .