In brief
Opposition MPs, including Rahul Gandhi, were detained by police while marching toward the Election Commission of India headquarters in Delhi to demand the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged manipulation of voter rolls. The protest, which saw 237 lawmakers participate, led to their temporary confinement on a police bus before they resumed the march and occupied a site near the commission. The move comes after a series of allegations that the Commission’s Special Intensive Revision process, aimed at removing duplicate and ineligible voters, may have wrongly excluded eligible voters and benefitted the ruling BJP, prompting a Supreme Court petition questioning the commission’s decision‑making procedure. Both the opposition and the ruling party have reacted sharply, with the BJP condemning the protests as an attempt to undermine constitutional institutions, while opposition leaders have demanded the commissioner’s resignation and the cancellation of the SIR exercise.
In the early hours of Tuesday, police in Delhi detained an estimated number of opposition lawmakers, including Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, as they moved toward the Election Commission of India headquarters demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over an alleged voter roll scandal.
The protest, reported to involve 237 MPs from a range of parties, was halted when police intercepted the group and placed them on a police bus. They were released soon after, resumed their march and set up a sit‑in near the commission’s office.
The controversy stems from the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls that began in Bihar last year, during which more than 130 million names have been stripped from draft lists nationwide. Opposition parties accuse the process of excluding eligible voters and giving an advantage to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Adding legal pressure, the Supreme Court has asked both the federal government and the Election Commission to respond to a petition that alleges the chief election commissioner acted unilaterally, bypassing the required unanimous or majority‑vote decisions of the three‑member body.
While the BJP labels the protest a “sponsored attempt to undermine constitutional institutions,” opposition leaders, including Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, have demanded the commissioner’s resignation, the cancellation of the SIR exercise, and a return to paper ballots.
