After the outbreak of the 2011 protests against the Azerbaijani government, Garalov vowed to "suppress" the demonstrations and said that the experience of "other countries", presumably a reference to Egypt, Libya, and Tunisia, would not be repeated in Azerbaijan. Ahead of a planned protest in mid-April, Garalov accused opposition leaders Ali Karimli and Isa Gambar with acting on orders from foreign governments and summoned both leaders for interrogation, after which they were released.