New Delhi [India], October 8 (ANI): Marking the third straight day of demonstrations in the national capital, INDIA bloc leaders gathered at Raj Ghat on Thursday for a peaceful tribute to Mahatma Gandhi in the spirit of 'satyagraha', vowing to press ahead with their demand for Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar's resignation over electoral roll revisions.
Prominent leaders present at the Raj Ghat memorial included Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, and Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.
The BJP rejected the opposition's allegations, with the party's national president, Nitin Nabin, saying Rahul Gandhi should resign "if he had the courage" and accusing the Congress leader of having an "anarchic mindset."
In a post on X, Mallikarjun Kharge accused the ruling government and the Election Commission of undermining democratic institutions.
"But Modi Ji and Gyanesh Kumar are together orchestrating 'vote theft.' This is dangerous for democracy and an assault on the Constitution; we will not tolerate it. We will continue to fight for its protection," he said.
Rahul Gandhi alleged a criminal conspiracy by Prime Minsiter Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, CEC Gyanesh Kumar and RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, affirming that they will be brought to justice.
He said, “About 300 MPs want to hold a peaceful protest. We are not being allowed to hold the protest for the past two days. On the first day, they stopped us in front of the Election Commission; the next day we were stopped near Jantar Mantar. Our people were beaten. The reality is that Narendra Modi, Amit Shah, Gyanesh Kumar and Mohan Bhagwat have hijacked India with a criminal conspiracy, destroyed the Constitution and did ‘vote chori’. Action will be taken, they will be brought to justice; this is our guarantee.”
Congress general secretary KC Venugopal said on X, "Thousands of concerned citizens marched on the streets of Delhi against the Vote Chori orchestrated by the Modi-Shah regime. Today's protest culminated at Rajghat, where INDIA bloc leaders led by INC President Sh. Mallikarjun Kharge ji and LOP Sh. Rahul Gandhi ji staged a Satyagraha."
Echoing similar sentiments, Congress MP Pawan Khera said that MPs went ot Raj Ghat to seek Mahatma Gandhi's blessing for a successful protest. "May wisdom prevail on Gyanesh Kumar so that he resigns. Our 'satyagraha' will continue in a non-violent manner. We will continue to fight until Gyanesh Kumar resigns and democracy is safeguarded in this country," he said.
MP K Suresh said thousands of workers took part, with Gandhi and Kharge leading the march from Connaught Place to Gandhi Smriti. "Our agitation will continue until Gyanesh Kumar resigns or he is removed from his post," Suresh said.
Alleging a "collusion" between the Central government and the Election Commission, Rajeev Shukla said, "We are doing 'satyagraha'. We prayed to Gandhi ji for wisdom to prevail on this Govt, and that elections are not won through deceit, names which were illegally deleted should be added back and that common people have the right to vote."
Targeting the police over their conduct during the protests, MP Pramod Tiwari said, "The police did not cooperate with us. Our struggle will continue until CEC Gyanesh Kumar resigns."
Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi called for Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation, claiming a diminishing public trust in the Election Commission.
He said, "Even the common public wants the resignation of CEC Gyanesh Kumar. The common public now has doubts about the EC and its fairness. So, I think the longer Gyanesh Kumar continues in his position, the more the trust of the public in the EC will diminish."
CPI(M) MP V Sivadasan and Congress MP Deepender Hooda said that "struggle" will continue until the CEC resigns.
The protests extended beyond Delhi, with senior RJD leader Tejashwi Yadav leading a parallel demonstration in Patna, Bihar and former West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee stating that she will join the INDIA bloc protests in Delhi.
Following Wednesday’s intense demonstrations, Delhi Police said they have registered three FIRs, with more cases likely. The FIRs cite alleged assault on police personnel, obstruction of government work, pushing and manhandling, and misbehaviour with police. The names of Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra figure in the details. Gandhi was detained on Wednesday and taken to Barakhamba Road Police Station after he was seen trying to open a barricaded gate.
The INDIA bloc has not yet announced its next move, with leadership expected to brief on its next move tomorrow, even as Delhi braces for the Cockroach Janta Party's protest on October 10.
Amidst the row, the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) has deployed "additional reserve" personnel to strengthen 'Z+' category security for Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, officials said.
Delhi has also ordered all retail liquor shops to shut on October 9 and 10 "as a preventive measure aimed at maintaining public order," citing inputs from Delhi Police and planned protests by the Cockroach Janta Party against Kumar.
Police have been put on high alert ahead of the CJP protest scheduled for October 10, with extensive security arrangements being put in place across the national capital, sources said. Delhi Police DCP Shrishti Pandey also said "some form of wrongful influence" is leading the younger generation astray, and urged protesters to consider the long-term and legal consequences of their actions.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) strongly refuted the opposition's claims.
The party's national spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia called the situation a "battle between two ideologies" and accused the opposition of creating an atmosphere of "anarchy."
"Prime Minister Narendra Modi has respected the core spirit of the Constitution and served the people of the country constitutionally over the past 25 years, both as Chief Minister and Prime Minister," Bhatia said at a press conference.
BJP spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari also lashed out at Rahul Gandhi and the Congress, framing it as a fight between the Gandhi-Vadra family and the people of India.
Bhandari said, "The Congress party is fighting against 'We, the People of India.' This battle has become one of the Congress party—its workers and the Gandhi-Vadra family—versus the people of India, who are silently witnessing the party's hooliganism. They used to speak about returning to ballot papers. Yet, we recently saw elections held in places like Assam and Tripura; the Congress party lost there too, even though EVMs were not the only factor.”
He said that Rahul Gandhi has realised that he has lost the public’s faith in him and accused the Congress leader of creating a democratic deficit in the country.
With opposition unrelenting on their demand and CJP's protest drawing near, the tensions in the national capital are expected to escalate over the next few days. (ANI)
INDIA bloc firm on CEC's resignation, stages 'satyagraha' at Raj Ghat; BJP calls it "anarchy"
