Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Monday said that the opposition is fighting to protect the Constitution. "We want a clean voters' list," the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha affirmed even as the protesting MPs were detained by the Delhi police amid high drama.
The opposition MPs had taken out a march from the Parliament House to the Election Commission headquarters to protest against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bihar. Wearing white caps with a red cross on the words 'SIR' and "vote chori", the protesting MPs raised slogans and carried placards and banners alleging “vote theft” and collusion between the EC and the government. A banner in front of the protesting MPs read "SIR+Vote Theft=Murder of Democracy", while another read "SIR - Loktantra Par Vaar". Before embarking on the protest march at Parliament's Makar Dwar, they sang the national anthem.
The MPs also carried "SIR par chuppi Kyu" placards along with posters alleging collusion between the EC and the government.
They were later whisked away by police in buses lined up along the road and taken to the Parliament Street Police Station. All the MPs were later released.
Earlier, the Election Commission, responding to a letter from Congress leader Jairam Ramesh, made it known that only 30 MPs would be allowed to meet the Election Commissioner. But the opposition MPs insisted that all of them be allowed. In his letter, Ramesh informed the Commission that all Opposition MPs were staging a peaceful march on August 1, 2025, after 11.30 am, and wished to collectively meet the Commission on a host of issues including but not limited to the SIR exercise in Bihar and other states. However, the ECI said Ramesh had acknowledged on Sunday the invitation for 30 MPs to meet the Commission at 12 noon on Monday, but “now he has changed his tone”.
With the Election Commission disinclined to meet all the Opposition MPs, the Delhi police had put up barricades at several places to stop the march. Police made announcements over loudspeakers that only 30 people would be allowed and asked MPs to send their representatives forward. Finally, the MPs, including Rahul Gandhi, were stopped by the police midway at Transport Bhawan and detained them.
As the MPs were stopped, many sat on the road and raised slogans, while some women MPs, including TMC's Mahua Moitra, Congress' Sanjana Jatav and Jothimani, climbed the barricades and raised slogans against the EC. SP's Akhilesh Yadav also climbed the barricade in a bid to breach the police cordon. TMC's Moitra and Mitali Bag fainted during the protest and were assisted by Rahul Gandhi.
"They're scared. They don't want to face the truth," Priyanka Gandhi Vadra said.
"Democracy being assaulted, murdered right outside Parliament," Congress's Jairam Ramesh said. In a post on X , he shared the letter to ECI, mentioning that he requested for the Opposition MPs collectively hand over a memorandum and not just a delegation. "Chunav Aayog is Chunav Aayog, it cannot be churao aayog," he told news agency PTI.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said the protest against 'vote chori' and SIR is a fight to protect people's right to vote and a struggle to save democracy, and asserted the INDIA alliance will expose BJP's "conspiracy".
In a post on X, he said, "BJP's cowardly dictatorship will not work!".
"This is a fight to protect the people's right to vote. This is a struggle to save democracy," he said.
"The allies of the INDIA coalition will surely expose this BJP conspiracy to shred the Constitution," Kharge said in his post in Hindi.
Rahul Gandhi, as he was being taken away, said, "This fight is not political, it is aimed at saving the Constitution. This fight is for 'one man, one vote' and we want a clean, pure voter list."
Prominent among those who participated in the march were T R Baalu (DMK), Sanjay Raut (SS-UBT), Derek O'Brien (TMC), Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Samajwadi Party's Akhilesh Yadav, as well as other MPs from opposition parties like the DMK, the RJD, Left parties.
The opposition has been protesting in both Houses of Parliament against the SIR, alleging that the EC's exercise is aimed at "disenfranchising voters" in Bihar ahead of the assembly elections due later this year.
They have been demanding a discussion on the issue in both Houses.
There has been a logjam in Parliament over the SIR in Bihar and both houses have seen frequent disruptions and insignificant legislative business has taken place ever since the Monsoon session of Parliament began on July 21.
Barring discussions on Operation Sindoor in the two Houses, Parliament has seen little business ever since the Monsoon session began on July 21 due to repeated adjournments, mostly over the SIR issue.
(With inputs from Agencies)