EC protesters take over central Delhi, Rahul Gandhi stands on barricade - The Indian Express
Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi, and others were detained on Tuesday as the INDIA bloc leaders marched to the Election Commission office, demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and withdrawal of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Security was stepped up across the New Delhi district, and the MPs were stopped on the way, following which they sat on a dharna. After a face-off with the cops, the MPs and leaders were removed from the spot and carried away in a bus.
Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi was joined by Trinamool Congress leader Derek O’brien and Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav.
As police moved in to detain the MPs, Rahul Gandhi climbed onto the barricades and began waving the Tricolour. Police personnel then brought him down and began escorting him towards a bus. Gandhi was seen adhering to Gen-Z lingo at the protest as he carried a poster that read: “Gyanesh, it’s done bro!” He posted the slogan on X,too, adding: “It’s time to resign”
#IndiaAllianceMarch https://t.co/9ZB6aJfakl
More than five companies of paramilitary personnel, along with local police, have been deployed along the route from Makar Dwar of Parliament to the Election Commission office. Around 140 Opposition MPs are expected to join the march, which is likely to begin between 10.30 am and 11 am.
Multi-layered barricading has been put in place outside the main entrance of the Election Commission and around Jantar Mantar. Police said prohibitory orders under Section 163 remain in force in the district and gatherings are not allowed.
The New Delhi district has been witnessing protests since October 2 by the Left and other opposition parties.
On October 1, the INDIA bloc announced a joint action plan which included protests across the country, a march by the Opposition MPs to the EC headquarters, and a mega rally in Delhi on November 1.
These decisions were taken at a three-and-a-half-hour meeting of the group in Delhi, which was attended by leaders of 19 parties and Independent MP Kapil Sibal.
Among the Opposition faces who attended the meeting were Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi; Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief Mamata Banerjee; Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah; RJD’s Tejashwi Yadav; NCP (SP) MP Supriya Sule; PDP chief Mehbooba Mufti; CPI(M) chief M A Baby; CPI(M)-L’s Dipankar Bhattacharya; and CPI’s P Santosh Kumar.
Earlier, around 25 MPs, including top Opposition leaders such as Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and Trinamool Congress MPs Abhishek Banerjee and Derek O’Brien, were detained and taken to different police stations in buses. Several party workers from the Congress and Samajwadi Party were also detained.
In connection with protests over the last five days near Jantar Mantar, police have registered nine FIRs under various sections, including those related to violation of prohibitory orders, rioting, and attacking police personnel while they were discharging their duties.
Eighteen people have also been arrested, while more than 300 people were detained and later released.
Police are also bracing for another protest later this week.
The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) has given a call for a demonstration at Jantar Mantar, as part of a nation-wide stir, on October 10, demanding the resignation of CEC Kumar.
This is the group’s second round of protests in the national capital after its July agitation demanding the resignation of then Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the NEET-UG ‘paper leak’.
Asad Rehman is with the national bureau of The Indian Express and covers politics and policy focusing on religious minorities in India. A journalist for over eight years, Rehman moved to this role after covering Uttar Pradesh for five years for The Indian Express. During his time in Uttar Pradesh, he covered politics, crime, health, and human rights among other issues. He did extensive ground reports and covered the protests against the new citizenship law during which many were killed in the state. During the Covid pandemic, he did extensive ground reporting on the migration of workers from the metropolitan cities to villages in Uttar Pradesh. He has also covered some landmark litigations, including the Babri Masjid-Ram temple case and the ongoing Gyanvapi-Kashi Vishwanath temple dispute. Prior to that, he worked on The Indian Express national desk for three years where he was a copy editor. Rehman studied at La Martiniere, Lucknow and then went on to do a bachelor's degree in History from Ramjas College, Delhi University. He also has a Masters degree from the AJK Mass Communication Research Centre, Jamia Millia Islamia. ... Read More
