Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, and other INDIA bloc leaders were detained by Delhi Police during a sit-in protest at Akashvani Bhavan. Police said the action was taken as the march to the ECI headquarters had no prior permission.
Police detail detention of Opposition leaders
The Delhi Police on Tuesday said it detained Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and other INDIA bloc leaders from the Akashvani Bhavan premises to “maintain law and order” and prevent the situation from deteriorating, stating that they had entered the premises “without permission” and staged a sit-in protest.
According to a Delhi Police statement, the action was taken in accordance with the law after Gandhi “refused to vacate” the area, stating that “they would not move until a delegation of MPs was granted time to meet officials of the Election Commission of India (ECI).” “To maintain law and order and prevent the situation from deteriorating further, Delhi Police had to take action to remove the protesters from the premises. During this action, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi, and other protesters were removed from the complex and detained as necessary,” the Delhi Police statement said.
March conducted ‘without permission’
Detailing the sequence of events, the Delhi Police said it gathered information through social media regarding a proposed march by the INDIA bloc from Parliament House to Nirvachan Sadan at around 10:30 am on Tuesday. The police claimed that no official permission had been sought or granted for the rally.
“No application seeking permission for the proposed march had been submitted to the Office of the Deputy Commissioner of Police, New Delhi District. Therefore, no permission was granted for the said proposed march,” the police said. The police said that after repeated non-compliance, security forces detained around 260 individuals, including 10 Members of Parliament. Following their detention, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and other leaders were taken to New Police Lines, Kingsway Camp, and were later released.
‘Save Democracy’ campaign protest
Earlier, Congress leaders staged a sit-in protest at Akashvani Bhavan after leaders of several INDIA bloc parties were stopped during a march towards Nirvachan Sadan, the headquarters of the Election Commission of India. The protest is part of a broader “Save Democracy” campaign announced by the Opposition, under which its leaders have been holding demonstrations and public programmes against the ECI amid a row over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise.
Congress General Secretary (Organisation) KC Venugopal, who was among the party leaders staging the sit-in protest, said they would not move until their demands were met. “Unmoved. Unfazed. We will not budge until our demands are met. We will not rest until our democracy is saved from the Vote Chors,” Venugopal posted on X.
While protesting, Rahul Gandhi said the Opposition would continue its protest inside the Akashvani Bhavan premises, and said that if Delhi Police was “uncomfortable” with the demonstration, it should provide an alternative venue.
Protest linked to ECI controversy
The fresh controversy comes in the backdrop of an Indian Express report, which claimed that two of the Election Commissioners, Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi, raised 14 objections during the SIR exercise. The Election Commission has maintained that the decisions were unanimous.
Opposition leaders have also raised questions over the modification in Form 6. The Supreme Court on Monday said that it had not approved any modified version of Form 6 being used for the enrolment of new voters during the SIR exercise. (ANI)
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