New Delhi: Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra were released late on Tuesday night after being detained twice during a high-profile Opposition protest against the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
The leaders were freed shortly after 10 pm, the Congress said. They were taken to the Kingsway Camp police lines after Delhi Police removed them from the premises of Akashvani Bhawan, where they had held a sit-in after being stopped from marching to the Election Commission’s office.
The protest was organised by Opposition parties over what they called irregularities in decisions taken by the poll panel, particularly its SIR exercise, described as a drive to revise and clean up electoral rolls.
The latest demonstration followed an earlier Opposition march from Parliament to the Election Commission on August 11, 2025, which was also held to protest the SIR process.
The current campaign began on October 2, when Opposition parties and civil society groups appealed to people to join demonstrations against the revision of electoral rolls.
EC Questions Meeting Request
The Election Commission issued a statement as Opposition MPs continued their sit-in at Akashvani Bhawan, saying that no political party had requested a meeting with it before 4 p.m, as reported by Hindustan Times.
The poll panel also raised objections to the proposed venue for the meeting — the Parliament House Annexe — and said such delegations should ordinarily meet officials at the Election Commission’s premises.
The ECI said it was examining a request submitted after 4 p.m. when the Delhi Police informed it that the proposed delegation would include 240 MPs and that the meeting was being sought at the Parliament complex.
Calling the request “unusual and unacceptable”, the Commission said established protocol required such meetings to be held at its office.
BJP Hits Out
The BJP dismissed the protest and accused the Congress of using the issue to revive Rahul Gandhi’s political fortunes.
Union minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan described the demonstration as another attempt to “relaunch Rahul Gandhi”. He also alleged that the Congress was seeking to “spread anarchy” across the country.
Police Cite Lack Of Permission
Delhi Police said it learnt through social media that Opposition MPs intended to march from Parliament at 10.30 am on Tuesday. According to the police, the organisers had not sought permission for the march.
The protesters allegedly crossed the first police barricade and moved towards another barricade near NITI Aayog, the force said.
Police officials said repeated announcements were made to inform the demonstrators that restrictions under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita were in place. They also asked the protesters to disperse peacefully.
The protesters did not follow the instructions and continued to remain at the site, the police said.