'Not Only Countering BJP, Will Destroy Them', Says Rahul Gandhi Amid Standoff With Police

Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday said that the Opposition is "not only countering" Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) but would also "destroy" them as he launched a march to the Election Commission office before being stopped by the police at Akashvani Bhavan.

Speaking to the reporters at the protest site, Rahul Gandhi accused the ruling party and Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar of undermining democracy through what he called “vote chori”.

“We are not only countering them (BJP); we will destroy them. I have no interest in what the BJP says. I am standing here to save democracy in India,” the Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition said during the protest.

Gandhi alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah and RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat had “hijacked the nation” through electoral manipulation, with Kumar’s assistance.

“Action will be taken against all of them. What has been done to our country is called treason; nobody is going to escape,” he said.

Rahul Gandhi Says Gyanesh Kumar Is 'Scared'

Gandhi said around 300 Opposition MPs wanted to meet Kumar and the two other Election Commissioners but had been prevented from reaching their office.

“We are elected representatives, but we don't know why we have been stopped here. We can't understand the problem—when the Election Commission is merely 50 metres away,” he said.

He questioned why the poll panel would not meet elected representatives and alleged that Kumar was “scared”.

“What is the meaning of democracy if the Election Commission doesn't meet the elected representatives?” Gandhi asked.

Opposition Leaders Detained During March

Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and Trinamool Congress MPs Abhishek Banerjee and Derek O’Brien were among the leaders detained after police halted the march, news agency PTI reported.

Security personnel initially stopped the MPs on Parliament Street near the NITI Aayog office. The protesters then sat on the road. Rahul Gandhi and Banerjee later climbed atop a police barricade.

Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra was taken to a bus for detention but soon alighted and joined Rahul at the Akashvani Bhawan gate. The two, along with Congress MP Deepender Hooda, subsequently entered the premises through the reception gate while attempting to reach the Election Commission office. They were later seen sitting under a tree.

BJP Accuses Rahul Of Spreading Anarchy

BJP MP Ravi Shankar Prasad accused Gandhi of trying to spread anarchy and criticised the Opposition’s demand for a return to ballot papers.

“This implies that since they cannot win elections using honest technology, they want to win through booth capturing,” Prasad said.

He alleged that a return to ballot papers could be used to prevent Dalits and poor villagers from voting and manipulate the outcome.

“This has been their strategy for years. We condemn this,” he added.

SIR And Form 6 Dispute Behind Protest

The march formed part of the Opposition’s campaign against alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls and its demand for greater transparency from the Election Commission.

Congress MP Dharamveer Gandhi alleged that 13 crore votes had been deleted, calling it the “biggest fraud in Indian political history”. Congress MP Imran Masood accused Kumar of weakening public confidence in the Commission.

CPI MP P Sandosh Kumar said the Supreme Court’s observations had strengthened the Opposition’s objections to the additional declaration attached to Form 6, which is used to apply for inclusion in electoral rolls.

The protest came a day after the Supreme Court said it had not approved a modified version of Form 6. The court said it would examine the Commission’s records to establish whether changes had been made and who had authorised them.

The Election Commission had earlier maintained that the declaration attached to Form 6 for the SIR exercise had been upheld by the Supreme Court. It said forms prescribed under the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960, would be used outside the SIR period.