NEW DELHI: The INDIA bloc’s confrontation with the Election Commission escalated on Thursday as Opposition leaders regrouped in Delhi for a third consecutive day, with Lok Sabha leader of opposition Rahul Gandhi saying around 300 MPs from both Houses wanted to stage a peaceful protest but had been stopped for two days.Rahul Gandhi, who was detained during Wednesday’s protest, said the Opposition would continue its campaign against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and alleged that the government and the Election Commission had “hijacked India” and “stolen votes”. He said the Opposition would ensure that those it holds responsible are brought to justice.Congress president and Rajya Sabha leader of opposition Mallikarjun Kharge, meanwhile, said INDIA bloc MPs were heading to the Gandhi Memorial for a peaceful sit-in and prayer. The latest mobilisation came after opposition MPs were stopped from proceeding towards Jantar Mantar on Wednesday, several leaders were detained and Delhi Police registered multiple FIRs over the protest.
Rahul Gandhi: ‘Around 300 MPs’ want to protest
Speaking in Delhi on Thursday, Rahul Gandhi said MPs from both the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha had been prevented from holding a peaceful protest for two consecutive days.“Around 300 MPs—from the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha—wish to stage a peaceful protest. We have been prevented from protesting for two days now. On the first day, we were stopped outside the Election Commission. Subsequently, we expressed our desire to protest at Jantar Mantar, yet yesterday, as you witnessed, we were stopped there as well; our people were assaulted. The reality is that Narendra Modi, Amit Shah, Gyanesh Kumar, and Mohan Bhagwat have hijacked India through a criminal conspiracy, destroyed the Constitution, and stolen votes. We, the Opposition, assure you that action will be taken. They will be brought to justice. This is our guarantee. You will see these four individuals brought to justice”Rahul Gandhi was speaking as he attended the second lunch meeting of opposition MPs at Connaught Place along with Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy and other INDIA alliance MPs.The meeting was hosted by Kharge and came a day after the Opposition’s attempt to march towards Jantar Mantar ended with police stopping the protesters and detaining several leaders, including Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.
Kharge leads MPs towards Gandhi Memorial
Mallikarjun Kharge said the INDIA alliance would proceed to the Gandhi Memorial for a peaceful sit-in after the lunch meeting.“We, the members of the INDIA alliance, are heading to the Gandhi Memorial to stage a peaceful sit-in protest. We will sit there and pray that the BJP government, specifically PM Modi and Union home minister Amit Shah be granted the wisdom to realize that their actions are not in the nation’s interest. Whether it is the issue of vote theft, the rising inflation, the problems facing the youth, or any other crisis they have created, everything goes against the public interest. That is why we are going to the Gandhi Memorial to pray; we want to highlight that they are snatching away the freedom we secured, the freedom won for us by great leaders like Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Mahatma Gandhi, and Vallabhbhai Patel and are making every effort to destroy it. They are taking away our right to vote. We are going there to pray that they be granted the wisdom to stop stripping us of our rights and freedoms—including the right to vote—that were secured for us by these great leaders. We will sit there and stage a protest”The fresh protest plan marks another attempt by the Opposition to maintain pressure on the Election Commission after its march towards Jantar Mantar was stopped on Wednesday.
Why is the INDIA bloc protesting?
The Opposition has been demanding the resignation of CEC Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.Congress leaders have repeatedly said that the INDIA bloc will continue its campaign until Kumar resigns, while the BJP has rejected the Opposition’s allegations and questioned its criticism of an Election Commission that conducted elections in states where Opposition parties came to power.The issue has also been framed by Congress leaders as a wider concern over the electoral process rather than merely a demand for the removal of the CEC.Congress MP Kodikunnil Suresh said earlier on Thursday that the Opposition had no intention of backing down.“And today also, we have a strong protest, an aggressive protest against Gyanesh Kumar. We are not going back,” Suresh said.He said the INDIA bloc leadership would decide its next strategy and that subsequent protests would be led by Rahul Gandhi, Kharge, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and other Opposition leaders.“Our ultimatum is for Gyanesh Kumar to resign from the Chief Election Commissioner post. If he is not ready to resign the post, the government should remove him from Chief Election Commissioner,” Suresh said.
What happened during Wednesday’s protest?
The latest mobilisation follows a tense day in Delhi on Wednesday when INDIA bloc MPs attempted to proceed towards Jantar Mantar to protest against Gyanesh Kumar and the SIR process.Delhi Police stopped the march, after which Opposition leaders staged a sit-in. Rahul Gandhi was among those detained and was taken to Barakhamba Road Police Station. He was seen attempting to open a barricaded gate as police prevented protesters from moving ahead.Priyanka Gandhi Vadra was also detained and taken to Chhatrasal Stadium. During the police action, she was seen lying on the ground and later alleged that force had been used against the protesting MPs.“What is the value of the Constitution in this nation? We will lay down our lives for the Constitution. No cost is too high for us,” Priyanka Gandhi told reporters while waving a copy of the Constitution from the police vehicle.Rahul Gandhi subsequently said the Congress and INDIA bloc would continue taking to the streets, even if it meant arrests and legal cases.“To save the Constitution and democracy, the Congress Party and the opposition are ready to take to the streets as many times as needed, face arrests, or endure legal cases.“This alliance between the dictatorial Modi government and the Election Commission has already been exposed. It is time for resignations and action. An arrogant regime cannot hold out for long against the fervour of the people.”He also said the Opposition would continue protesting until Gyanesh Kumar resigns.“We are not going to stop protesting till Gyanesh Kumar resigns. This is a fight to protect the most sacred thing in this country. There is nothing that Narendra Modi and Amit Shah can do that will stop us,” he said.
Three FIRs filed over Wednesday protest
Delhi Police has registered three FIRs in connection with Wednesday’s Opposition protest, with more cases being registered, according to the police.The cases relate to allegations including assault on police personnel, obstruction of government work, pushing and manhandling, and misbehaviour with police personnel.The names of Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also figure in the details of the FIRs registered so far.The latest cases add to an earlier FIR related to the Opposition’s protest outside the Election Commission.On Tuesday, INDIA bloc MPs had planned a march from Parliament House towards Nirvachan Sadan, the Election Commission headquarters. Police said no official permission had been sought or granted for the proposed march.After protesters were stopped near the Election Commission office, several Opposition leaders staged a sit-in. Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra later entered the Akashvani Bhavan premises along with other leaders and continued their protest there.Police said the protesters were asked to leave but allegedly refused, insisting that a delegation of MPs be allowed to meet Election Commission officials. Police subsequently intervened, removed the protesters from the premises and detained them.
Police constable alleges assault
The police account of Wednesday’s confrontation also emerged on Thursday.Delhi Police constable Ankit Kasana alleged that he was assaulted by demonstrators during the detention of Rahul Gandhi near Jantar Mantar.Kasana, who is posted at Parliament Street police station, said he was deployed for crowd control when security personnel attempted to move Rahul Gandhi after his detention.“Yesterday around 6:30, when we were at our duty points, there was a detention going on there. We suddenly found out that Rahul sir had been detained. As soon as we had to get his car out safely because these people weren’t letting us through there sometimes they would lie down in front of the car, sometimes they would stop the car and push it. As we were trying to turn the car, a private vehicle blocked the way. We saw that there were some Congress supporters,” Kasana told ANI.He alleged that around 30 to 35 people, including men and women, surrounded him while Rahul Gandhi was being detained. He alleged that the group abused him, tore his uniform, scratched him and bit him.“Some leaders tried to hijack that car, forcefully trying to snatch the keys. At the same time, I reached there and moved those people away. During this, an Inspector took the car into his custody and started backing it up so we could safely move Rahul Gandhi from there. As soon as they saw that I was alone and sir was inside, someone grabbed my collar from behind, tore my uniform, and broke my button too.”Kasana was subsequently taken to Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital for a medical check-up.“We actually help the public a lot, and that’s why the public trusts the Delhi Police. But if these people want to destroy that trust, we won’t let that happen. No matter how much they harass us or abuse us, we won’t be aggressive. We’ll do our duty peacefully. We have to maintain law and order, and we’ll make sure we do,” he said.
Congress says protest is about electoral process
Congress leaders have linked the campaign against Gyanesh Kumar to wider allegations concerning the electoral rolls and the SIR exercise.Congress MP Manickam Tagore accused the BJP and the government of protecting the CEC and questioned why the Opposition was being prevented from protesting.“This is the Gujarat model which they (central govt) wanted to expand across India. what we are asking now. What was the LoP Rahul Gandhi asking for from the first day?… We were stopped at Akashwani Bhavan. Rahul Gandhi sat under that tree. Therefore, there is an FIR on it. Now yesterday we went to Sagar Ratna restaurant. From there we went, we wanted to go to Jantar Mantar. The police stopped us. Then now there is again an FIR against Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi. What HM Amit Shah and PM Modi are doing, we are unable to understand. They are clueless at first. They are not able to understand what is the issue we are speaking about. We are asking for the Chief Election Commissioner’s resignation… why are they giving him this much protection?… They are afraid of that mobilization across India. Rahul Gandhi has emerged as the leader on those issues which have been affecting this country. It is not only about the CEC. It is about the electoral process they completely hijacked,” he said.Congress MP Imran Masood also raised allegations concerning deletion of voters from electoral rolls.“Until this loot stops and the 13 crore people whose voting rights were cut are restored, this fight will continue. What is the meaning of democracy if such a huge number of voters are removed? The number of names cut in the name of Bangladeshis is more than the population of Bangladesh itself… What is the meaning of the Election Commission…”The Election Commission has maintained that differing views and observations are part of institutional deliberations and that its orders carry legal sanction and follow established statutory procedures.
Protest spreads to Patna
The INDIA bloc’s campaign also spread beyond Delhi on Thursday, with RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav joining a protest in Patna against Gyanesh Kumar.Yadav alleged that Opposition MLAs had been stopped by police.“Our MLAs have been stopped by the police. They are not letting us move,” Yadav said.He accused PM Modi, Gyanesh Kumar and Amit Shah of vote theft and said the protesters were marching towards Raj Bhavan.“We are holding a march to the Raj Bhavan today. We are marching because of the way Gyanesh Kumar, PM Modi, and HM Amit Shah have orchestrated vote theft and worked to destroy the country’s democracy. We are marching today to demand punishment for the conspirators who plotted to destroy our democracy,” he alleged.The Patna demonstration centred on the Opposition’s allegations of irregularities in the SIR process and its demand for the removal of the CEC.
BJP hits back at Rahul Gandhi
The BJP has rejected the Opposition’s allegations and attacked Rahul Gandhi over the protests.BJP national president Nitin Nabin described Rahul Gandhi and his supporters as having an “anarchist mindset” and accused them of trying to spread “poison” in society.“I can only say that they are of ‘arajaktawadi’ (anarchist) mindset and trying to spread poison in society. If he had such objections, elections in Kerala were also conducted by the same Election Commission. The election in Tamil Nadu, where they have come to power, was also conducted by the same Election Commission,” Nabin said.“If Rahul Gandhi has the courage, he should first resign. The people are watching the manner in which he is playing this game,” he said.Nabin also accused the Leader of Opposition of protecting infiltrators and said the BJP would oppose attempts to settle people in India with what he described as a “foreign mindset”.
What triggered the row over SIR?
The Congress has been demanding Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation amid allegations concerning decisions and orders related largely to the SIR process.
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The Indian Express had reported that election commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had objected on record at least 14 times over the previous 10 months to decisions and orders, mostly concerning the SIR exercise.The Election Commission has maintained that differing views and observations are part of deliberations in any institution. It has also said its orders have full legal sanction and follow established statutory procedures.The Opposition has continued to demand greater transparency and accountability from the poll panel, making Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation its central demand.
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