site.btaSiyanie Coalition Leader Says He Will Face Slander Accusations, Won't Use Parliamentary Immunity

Siyanie (Radiance) coalition leader Nikolay Popov said on Wednesday that he will face a slander accusations without invoking parliamentary immunity as a candidate in the April 19 parliamentary elections. Popov was speaking during a protest in his support in front of the Pleven District Court.

Popov, whose daughter Siyana died in a road accident on March 31, 2025, has criticized the country’s road safety system as ineffective, citing lack of institutional control, poor road conditions and speeding as major causes of accidents. He has called for leadership changes in key road safety agencies and has set up a coalition against the “war on roads,” inviting media, NGOs, the transport sector and authorities to join. He has been accused of slander by an official who has lost her job in the wake of the crash that killed Popov's daughter. 

During the protest, Popov said that he wants to face trial, and if the court finds him guilty, he should be sent to prison.

He said that instead of the perpetrators responsible for his daughter’s death facing justice, he is the one on the defendant’s bench. “Such things should not happen. The positions of those guilty of my daughter’s death should not be swapped with those of a victim like me. The fight is for justice,” he said.

Popov expressed hope that people will support him to prevent such injustices, emphasizing that he is running in the elections not for himself, but to bring about change.

Citizens and candidates from the Siyanie coalition list attended the protest.