In brief
In Delhi, opposition lawmakers, including Rahul Gandhi, were detained by police while marching toward the Election Commission headquarters demanding the chief election commissioner’s resignation over a controversial voter roll revision. The police moved MPs onto buses and into police stations before the protest resumed with a sit‑in. The move comes amid accusations that the Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) is favouring the ruling BJP, a claim denied by the BJP and the Commission. The dispute has even reached India’s Supreme Court, which is reviewing petitions that question the chief election commissioner’s decision‑making process.
Opposition lawmakers, led by Rahul Gandhi, were detained by police as they marched toward the Election Commission headquarters in Delhi, demanding the chief election commissioner resign over a voter roll revision that critics say favours the ruling BJP.
Police moved MPs onto buses and into different police stations before the protest resumed with a sit‑in outside the Commission’s office. The crackdown follows allegations that the Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) has removed 130 million names, removing duplicate and ineligible voters, but also wrongly excluding eligible ones.
The controversy has drawn criticism from opposition parties and even the Supreme Court, which has asked the government and the Commission to explain whether the chief election commissioner acted alone in key decisions.
BJP leaders described the protests as an attempt to use “anarchy” to shift power, while Congress leaders called for the Commissioner’s resignation and a return to paper ballots.
The sit‑in and police standoff highlight the growing frustration over electoral reforms and underscore the tension between ensuring clean voter lists and maintaining public trust in India’s democracy.
