Emotional scenes filmed in parliament last night as former Minister of Culture, Balázs Hankó bid farewell to his wife and children, before voluntarily handing himself in to prosecutors. Out of the three politicians, whose immunity was lifted by a unanimous vote in parliament yesterday by TISZA MP’s, only Péter Magyar, investigated for theft of property, remains at large.
“Neo-communist tactics. The autocrats of the TISZA camp are raising taxes, driving up petrol prices to the skies, and ruining the Hungarian economy.
“Our message to every Hungarian is this: the autocrats of the TISZA camp will not break the community of the national side—we will not let them! They cannot imprison half the country”, posted former Prime Minister Viktor Orbán on his social media platform. The FIDESZ leader has also posted a live video of Mr. Hankó saying goodbye to his visibly shaken children and wife, who have accompanied him to his journey to the headquarters of the National Tax and Customs Administration in Budapest, where prosecutors have detained him.
The detention of the Hungarian MP is interpreted by many as an act of intimidation against conservative Hungarians. As Mr. Hankó’s lawyer explained yesterday, none of the specific grounds for arrest applied to his client. “In the case of Balázs Hankó, the possibility of reoffending is ruled out; he will not go into hiding, nor can he destroy evidence,” stated lawyer Gábor M. Tóth.
Mr. Hankó’s case involves the so called National Cultural Fund (NKA), where prosecutors claim that he, as the institution’s chair, was responsible for misappropriation of NKA funds. Investigators allege that over EUR 50 million was paid out in breach of the law. They also claim that funds were diverted to election campaign events instead of being used for supporting cultural initiatives. The former minister denies these claims and has vowed to refute all the accusations “point by point”.
On social media platforms, messages from thousands of TISZA supporters have flooded the comment sections and hundreds of often offensive memes have celebrated the demise of the FIDESZ politician. However, on the conservative side the move is interpreted as the salvo to a purge against conservative politicians.
András László, MEP for FIDESZ wrote on X saying that “the era of political show trials is back! Today the authoritarian rule in Hungary reached a new low. The judiciary is acting on the PM’s personal instructions. Two months ago, during a heated outburst at the session of the Hungarian Parliament, PM Péter Magyar accused Balázs Hankó, the former Minister for Culture and now opposition MP, and threatened him with imprisonment. When Hankó rose to speak to refute the false allegations, Péter Magyar instructed the Speaker of the House to cut him off and called on the MPs from the TISZA party to publicly humiliate him.”
“Péter Magyar announced the politically motivated proceeding IN ADVANCE on social media. All of this constitutes a serious violation of the independence of the judiciary. And the PM does not even care to pretend that the judiciary is independent”, wrote the Hungarian politician.
The era of political show trials are back!
— András LÁSZLÓ MEP 🇭🇺 (@laszloan) September 28, 2026
Today the authoritarian rule in Hungary reached a new low.
The judiciary is acting on the PM's personal instructions.
Two months ago, during a heated outburst at the session of the Hungarian Parliament, PM Péter Magyar accused Balázs… https://t.co/epVJdlWGPj
For his part, Magyar went on a conspicuously theatrical rant against the Office of the Prosecutor General, slamming it for “grouping together” the immunity cases concerning the Prime Minister and two former ministers of the Orbán government. The Prime Minister stated that the intention had been to place him in an awkward position and perhaps obscure the “complicity of the Office of the Prosecutor General and the investigative prosecutor’s office in the crimes of the Orbán regime.” Instead, they achieved the exact opposite: they exposed themselves, Magyar claimed.
If polls are to be believed, the TISZA government still enjoys the support of the majority of Hungarian voters, who are now fed a constant stream of propaganda from the now almost exclusively government loyalist press in Hungary, and pro-TISZA public broadcasters. Despite the repression unfolding after the April elections that is unprecedented in post-communist Hungary, such as the removal of the President of the Republic, the dismissal of the Prosecutor General or that of the Head of the Constitutional Court, EU leaders have exclusively been showering praise at the Magyar government, even releasing previously withheld funds, such as Erasmus.
German government politicians are particularly enthusiastic about the latest developments in Hungary, with Defense Minister Boris Pistorius (SPD) saying during his official visit last week that “Hungary inspires courage in many people, because here the people have shown that democracy can flourish even within an authoritarian system”. Marcus Söder, leader of the CSU, has also expressed his “delight at the election victory of Péter Magyar and the TISZA Party”, during a recent visit, reinforcing opinions that the Magyar regime is following a German textbook in its crackdown on the conservative opposition and in initiating lawfare against its political opponents.