Indian opposition MPs, including Rahul Gandhi, detained in protest demanding election chief's resignation

By Abhishek Dey

Image caption: Many opposition lawmakers, including Congress party's Rahul Gandhi, were stopped midway as they marched towards the Election Commission headquarters

Police in Delhi detained several opposition lawmakers on Tuesday as they attempted to march to the Election Commission headquarters, demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over a controversial voter roll revision.

Main opposition leader Rahul Gandhi, his sister Priyanka Gandhi, and other Members of Parliament were forced into a police bus. They were released shortly after and resumed their march, beginning a sit-in near the Election Commission office.

The protest marks the latest escalation in a growing dispute over a nationwide revision of voter rolls. Opposition parties accuse Kumar of overseeing a process that could benefit Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) — an allegation both the BJP and the Election Commission have rejected.

Image caption: Security officials blocked the roads from India's parliament to the election commission headquarters

"Some of the MPs tried to take some other roads to the Election Commission building. We have officers stationed at multiple points, from where the protesters were picked up in buses and taken to different police stations," Additional Deputy Commissioner of Police Manjeet Sheoran told the BBC.

Police did not disclose how many lawmakers had been detained. The opposition said 237 MPs from a range of parties participated in the march.

Background of the Controversy

Tuesday's protest came just four days after the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), a Gen Z-backed online satirical movement, organised demonstrations in Mumbai and Delhi also demanding the CEC's resignation. The group described those demonstrations as the beginning of a nationwide campaign and has called for another round of protests on 10 October.

At the centre of the controversy is the Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. The exercise began in the eastern state of Bihar in June 2025 before being expanded to other parts of the country.

• The Election Commission says the revision is intended to remove duplicate and ineligible voters.
• More than 130 million names have so far been removed from draft voter lists nationwide.
• Opposition parties and activists allege that many eligible voters have been wrongly excluded and accuse the poll body of conducting the process improperly.

Political Fallout

The campaign against Kumar gained momentum after an investigation by the Indian Express newspaper reported that election commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had formally objected at least 14 times over a 10-month period to decisions and orders they said had been issued in the Election Commission's name without their knowledge.

According to the report, the objections related to:

• Additions and deletions from voter rolls
• Access to the voter database
• Security of electoral data

Some concerns were linked directly to the electoral roll revision programme.

The Election Commission, a three-member body comprising the chief election commissioner and two election commissioners, defended its decision-making process, saying differing views were part of institutional functioning and that decisions had ultimately been taken unanimously.

The revelations triggered a political backlash, with opposition leaders intensifying calls for Kumar's resignation.

Image caption: India's Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar is at the centre of a controversy over allegations of manipulating voter rolls

Security and Demands

Security was tightened around the Election Commission headquarters on Tuesday, with police barricading roads along the route between parliament and the commission's office.

Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge described three demands as "non-negotiable":

1. Kumar's resignation
2. Cancellation of the SIR exercise
3. A return to paper ballot voting

Mocking the election chief, Rahul Gandhi, the leader of the opposition in India's lower house of parliament, tweeted: "Gyanesh, it's done, bro. Time to resign."

BJP Response

The BJP condemned the protests. BJP MP Sambit Patra described them as a "sponsored attempt" to bring about a change of power through "anarchy". He accused opposition parties of seeking to undermine constitutional institutions, including the Election Commission.

Supreme Court Involvement

The controversy has also reached India's Supreme Court, which has asked both the federal government and the Election Commission to respond to a petition alleging that Kumar took key decisions without the approval of the two other election commissioners.

• The petition argues that Kumar exercised powers that belong to the commission collectively.
• It seeks a ruling that any such actions were unauthorised.
• The court indicated that Election Commission decisions must be taken either unanimously or by majority vote.
• The court suggested that decisions could be set aside if found to have bypassed that process.
• However, it declined to suspend Kumar at this stage, saying it would first hear the Election Commission's response and examine relevant records.

The BBC has contacted the Election Commission for comment on Tuesday's protest.

Related Topics

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• Narendra Modi
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• Delhi
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