New Delhi, October 6: Opposition MPs of the INDIA bloc, including Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and Rajya Sabha LoP Mallikarjun Kharge, staged a sit-in on Tuesday after police stopped their march from Parliament towards the Election Commission of India headquarters.
The opposition leaders were demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. The march was stopped near the NITI Aayog office, following which the MPs sat on the road and raised slogans against the Election Commission.
Rahul Gandhi posted on X, “Gyanesh, it’s done bro. Time to resign,” while several opposition leaders accused the poll panel of undermining public confidence in the electoral process.
Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, TMC leaders Abhishek Banerjee and Derek O’Brien, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and CPI(M) leader John Brittas were among those who participated in the protest.
The opposition MPs carried placards and raised slogans including “Save Democracy” and “Save My Vote”, while some protesters also displayed cutouts depicting the CEC in an RSS uniform.
Opposition Raises Form 6 Issue
The protest came a day after the Supreme Court said it had not approved any modified version of Form 6 and that it would examine the Election Commission’s records to determine whether changes had been made and who authorised them.
Opposition parties have cited the court’s observations while questioning the Election Commission’s handling of the SIR exercise and the additional declaration attached to Form 6.
The Election Commission, however, has maintained that decisions concerning the SIR were taken unanimously and has rejected allegations of internal division or wrongdoing.
Heavy Security Deployed
Heavy security arrangements and barricades were put in place around Parliament and the Election Commission headquarters ahead of the march. Opposition MPs questioned the extensive deployment, saying they intended to hold a peaceful demonstration.
The INDIA bloc’s protest is part of its broader campaign against the SIR process and its demand for greater transparency in electoral-roll revision. The Election Commission has defended the exercise and rejected allegations that its actions were politically motivated.
