SIR Row: Opposition Plans Long Haul From Street Protests To Parliament

In what is being seen as a change of strategy, the INDIA bloc-led by the Congress has decided to take on the Bharatiya Janata Party on the streets of the National Capital and other major cities across the Capital. INDIA bloc has been on the streets demanding the resignation of the Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

According to sources, the Congress and its INDIA bloc partners plan to maintain pressure on the government until there is a resolution to their concerns over the SIR exercise. The Congress has directed its state, district and block units to organise protests across the country on Thursday, October 8, which the party has described as a ‘Black Day’ for democracy. The protests are expected to intensify across the states in the coming days. Congress expects this to revitalise all its state and district units. 

The strategy was first discussed at the Congress Working Committee meeting on September 29, when the party decided to take the issue to the streets. A day later, at the INDIA bloc meeting, Opposition parties agreed to “hit the ground” with a joint campaign. The plan included a march by Opposition MPs to the Election Commission headquarters, rallies in several states and a large public meeting in Delhi on November 1.

The Opposition parties, said sources, will use the protests to reach out to voters and highlight what they allege are attempts to undermine citizens’ right to elect their representatives.

The INDIA bloc has also decided to jointly approach the Supreme Court to challenge the 2023 law that grants immunity to the Chief Election Commissioner and other Election Commissioners for decisions taken in the course of their duties.

One of the senior most Opposition leaders and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge has been reaching out directly to leaders and MPs of other Opposition parties and inviting them to lunch meetings. The effort is aimed at projecting unity within the INDIA bloc and bringing its partners together on a common platform to take on the BJP. It is also an attempt to demonstrate that the Opposition’s campaign is based on joint decision-making rather than being led by the Congress alone.

The strategy was put into action on October 6, when Opposition MPs from both Houses marched towards the Election Commission’s office. They were stopped midway, but Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi and his sister, Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, managed to enter the Akashvani Bhavan premises, where they remained for several hours.

The sit-in, which the Congress described as an “impromptu” decision, ended after police detained the siblings and other Congress leaders accompanying them and took them to a police station. They were later released.

A day later, they were all invited to lunch by Kharge after which the MPs boarded buses and attempted headed to Jantar Mantar Road, which his less than a kilometer away. But the police barricaded the route and the Opposition turned it into a roadshow.

To keep the Delhi Police on it toes and in a sign that the Congress and Opposition are  changing tactics each day, the Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee, led by Devendra Yadav, held a march to Raj Ghat, shortly before Opposition MPs were scheduled to meet for lunch. The move was seen as another effort by the Congress and its allies to keep the Delhi Police and the government under pressure while varying the form and location of their protests.

The Congress is expected to continue the campaign on Friday. The Indian Youth Congress has approached the Delhi High Court seeking permission to hold a protest at Jantar Mantar on October 9. The plea will be heard on Friday. 

They have also requested to meet the President Draupadi Murmu, which is likely to be the next plan of action. 

There is likely to be a brief pause in the Congress’s street protests on Saturday, when Rahul Gandhi is scheduled to be in Chennai. However, a joint student protest against CEC Gyanesh Kumar is planned at Jantar Mantar that day.

The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), AISA, the All India Students’ Federation (AISF) and the Students’ Federation of India (SFI) have submitted a formal intimation to the Delhi Police about Saturday’s protest. The Aam Aadmi Party’s student wing, Association of Students for Alternative Politics (ASAP), also joined a press conference announcing the agitation. Senior leaders and MPs from the participating organisations are expected to attend.

The Opposition is likely to take the issue into Parliament during the winter session after sustaining the campaign outside it. The monsoon session has not been prorogued, while a special session on the Women’s Reservation Bill and the Delimitation Bill is unlikely to be called in the next two weeks. The Parliament complex and its surrounding gates are also undergoing renovation and repair work.