While he was there, he was very active in his criticism of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and the Pahlavi regime. This led to him being interrogated and harassed several times by SAVAK, which lead to the eventual arrest. He was taken by SAVAK and interrogated on 20 August 1978, they raided his home and was sent to Tehran the same night.[10][2][11] This led to protests around Babol County as the people were very fond of Hadi, with the pressure from the people, the Shah ordered for him to be released on 1 September 1978.[6]