Delhi Police on Monday detained over 30 opposition MPs, including Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, during a protest march to the Election Commission (EC) office against the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut and TMC leader Sagarika Ghose were among those held.
Police said the MPs were stopped and taken to Parliament Street Police Station as no permission had been sought for the protest march. The EC had authorised entry for only 30 MPs into its premises, but protesters turned up in “large numbers,” officials stated.
The opposition leaders began their march from Makar Dwar in Parliament, intending to submit a memorandum to the EC over alleged voter list manipulation in Bihar and Karnataka. Police informed them they would be taken to the EC only after the names of the permitted MPs were confirmed.
Security was intensified near the EC headquarters, with multiple barricades, additional police vehicles, and quick reaction teams deployed to maintain order and ensure smooth traffic flow.
The protest was part of a broader opposition campaign alleging that the SIR exercise in Bihar is being used to manipulate electoral rolls ahead of elections. The Congress also raised concerns about alleged large-scale voter list tampering in Bengaluru’s Mahadevapura constituency during the 2023 Karnataka Assembly polls.
