Congress leaders clash with police in Delhi protest over Election Commission appointment
Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and other Congress MPs staged an eight-hour sit-in at Akashvani Bhavan after a police-blocked march to the Election Commission, ending in their detention.
A large opposition convoy heading from Parliament to the Election Commission headquarters in New Delhi was stopped by a heavy police presence, sparking a confrontation between the Modi government and the INDIA bloc. Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and a group of Congress and Samajwadi Party MPs forced their way onto the Akashvani Bhavan grounds, launching an eight-hour dharna despite police barricades. Prominent INDIA bloc legislators such as Mallikarjun Kharge, Akhilesh Yadav, Sanjay Raut, Supriya Sule and Abhishek Banerjee were among those marching.
After an hour, police detained the leaders and escorted them to Kingsway camp, but many protesters re-entered the lawns and continued the sit-in under a tree. Rahul Gandhi denounced Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat as having hijacked the country and warned of treason charges. The standoff highlighted tensions over the pending appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner.
Why it matters
It shows escalating political tension over the Election Commission, a key institution for India’s upcoming elections.
How this story developed
- Sep 23 Election Commission denies internal dissent, says all decisions were unanimous
- Sep 23 Congress senior filed a petition urging the Supreme Court to intervene and summon the Election Commission members.
- Sep 25 A Supreme Court petition seeking criminal prosecution of the chief election commissioner was filed.
- Sep 26 The Election Commission announced that Booth Level Officers will visit voters flagged in the SIR to collect supporting documents, with online hearings and additional help desks to be established.
- Sep 27 Opposition parties announced nationwide rallies and a parliamentary motion to force the CEC’s resignation following the removal of over 130 million voter names.
- Oct 2 The Cockroach Janata Party and a coalition of student activists will protest in Mumbai and New Delhi, calling for Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar to step down over disputed voter-list changes.
- Oct 2 The Supreme Court agreed to hear a petition questioning the Election Commission’s decision‑making next week.
- Oct 4 The Supreme Court will hear petitions on Oct 5 seeking the suspension of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar amid a dispute over the special intensive revision exercise.
- Oct 5 Delhi police deployed roughly 5,000 officers and paramilitary units ahead of two anti‑CEC marches.
- Oct 5 The court issued a notice to the Election Commission and the Centre after refusing to suspend the chief election commissioner.
- Oct 6 Opposition MPs including Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi were briefly detained during a protest march toward the Election Commission.
In this story
Related stories
35 in this thread