On Monday, Indian police detained Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, his sister Priyanka Gandhi, and several senior opposition Members of Parliament as they marched in New Delhi.
The march was organized to protest a controversial revision of Bihar’s electoral rolls. Reports from Indian media indicate that the protest was a coordinated effort led by a united opposition.
The protest was triggered by the Election Commission of India’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise, which requires voters in Bihar to present citizenship proof by July 25. Critics argue that this move could disenfranchise minorities ahead of state elections.
The Special Intensive Revision was introduced only four months before state elections, aiming to address the significant challenge of verifying voter identities in Bihar, one of India’s most densely populated states.
According to the Press Trust of India (PTI), lawmakers from Congress, Samajwadi Party, Trinamool Congress, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Rashtriya Janata Dal, Shiv Sena (UBT), and other parties began their march from Parliament to the Election Commission headquarters.
However, the group was stopped halfway near Transport Bhawan. Some MPs climbed barricades, chanting slogans and carrying placards accusing authorities of “vote theft” and referring to the SIR as the “murder of democracy.”
Rahul Gandhi, after his detention, posted on X, stating, “This fight is not political — it is to protect democracy, the Constitution, and the right to one person, one vote.” Opposition leaders have consistently demanded that the SIR be rolled back, alleging that it is designed to suppress votes.
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh wrote to the Election Commission, requesting a meeting to discuss the Bihar exercise and its potential expansion to other states. He emphasized the issue as a matter of “the highest tradition of parliamentary democracy.”
The protests are occurring in the context of a parliamentary deadlock since the start of the Monsoon session on July 21, with repeated disruptions over the SIR issue and minimal legislative progress.
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Muhammad Luqman is Associate Editor at Views News Now. He writes on wide-ranging issues including economy, South Asia, the Middle East, agriculture, economy and innovation. Luqman has worked some of the leading news organizations and won acclaim for his original and research-based works.
