‘What has been done Is treason’: Rahul Gandhi targets Modi, Shah, Gyanesh Kumar amid ECI protest

New Delhi: Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat and Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar had “hijacked” the country through what he called “vote chori”, and said none of them would escape accountability.

Speaking to reporters from inside the Akashvani Bhawan premises, where he was in a standoff with police during the opposition's march to the Election Commission, Gandhi alleged that what had been done to the country amounted to “treason”.

“There will be action against them. None of them will be spared,” Gandhi said, referring to Modi, Shah, Bhagwat and Gyanesh Kumar.

Rahul Gandhi says 300 MPs joined protest

Gandhi said more than 300 Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha MPs had joined the protest to “protect democracy”.

“I am not interested in what the BJP says. I am standing here to protect democracy in the country,” he said.

Earlier, in a post on X, Gandhi had asked why the Election Commissioners were not meeting the opposition leaders and questioned why police were stopping and threatening them.

The INDIA bloc's protest march was organised to demand the resignation of CEC Gyanesh Kumar.
Also read | Priyanka Gandhi detained during INDIA bloc protest, later released

Rahul enters Akashvani Bhawan after march is stopped

The protest took a dramatic turn after police stopped the opposition march from Parliament towards the Election Commission headquarters.

Around 12.20 pm, Gandhi moved towards the reception entrance of Akashvani Bhawan after speaking to Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, who was seated inside a police bus.

Staff initially tried to prevent Gandhi from entering near gate number 3, leading to a standoff. He eventually entered the premises accompanied by his security personnel.

Priyanka Gandhi later joined him. Congress leaders and MPs also gathered at the site as the standoff continued.

Opposition leaders detained during march

Several opposition leaders were detained after police stopped the protest march.

Those detained included Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, TMC leaders Abhishek Banerjee, Derek O'Brien and Mahua Moitra, CPM MP John Brittas and Congress leaders, according to the reports.

Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi were among those stopped earlier on Parliament Street near the Akashvani Bhawan and NITI Aayog during the march.

Several detained leaders were later released and returned to the protest site.

Earlier on Tuesday, Gandhi directly targeted the Chief Election Commissioner in a post on X.

“Gyanesh, it’s done, bro. Time to resign,” he wrote.

The opposition has been demanding Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation as part of its campaign over the revision of electoral rolls.
Also read | Gyanesh Kumar protest: Why Mumbai Police and Delhi Police reacted differently

Opposition demands action over voter-list revision

Congress leaders also raised allegations concerning the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

Congress Rajya Sabha MP Syed Naseer Hussain said the demands included the resignation of the CEC, scrapping the SIR exercise and restoring voters who had been removed from the electoral rolls.

“Weighing in on the opposition's demands,” Hussain also called for a high-level inquiry into alleged political interference in the election machinery.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge alleged that the government was taking away people's rights and accused the CEC of acting at its behest.

Congress MP Dharamveer Gandhi separately alleged that 13 crore votes had been deleted and described it as a major attack on democratic rights.

The opposition march, which initially appeared to be ending after police stopped the leaders and detained several MPs, continued inside the Akashvani Bhawan premises.

The protest remained focused on the opposition's demand for the CEC's resignation and its allegations concerning the electoral roll revision process.