Thiruvananthapuram | Kerala Chief Minister V D Satheesan on Wednesday strongly criticised the police action against Congress leaders during their protest in New Delhi over the alleged NEET paper leak.

Satheesan, who participated in the protest in Delhi, alleged that Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Congress general secretary and Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, AICC general secretary K C Venugopal, Karnataka Chief Minister D K Shivakumar, MPs and other leaders were "forcibly removed" by the police.

"They were subjected to excessive use of force. The previous day too, students protesting and demanding the minister's resignation over the issue were treated cruelly. What happened in Delhi yesterday was a repetition of that," he told reporters after the state Cabinet meeting here.

The Chief Minister said the protests would continue, alleging that several students had died by suicide and that the Centre had failed to take action against those responsible.

"This cannot be justified under any circumstances. What happened in Delhi yesterday was condemnable," he said.

He said the Kerala Assembly had already passed a resolution on the issue and sent it to the Centre, adding that the state government would extend its full support to the students' fight for justice and their rights.