Delhi Police halts India Bloc march protesting EC decisions

Opposition MPs have launched a protest march from Parliament to the Election Commission over alleged irregularities.

Opposition MPs have started a protest march from Parliament to the Election Commission headquarters over allegations of 'vote theft' and irregularities in the decisions of the Election Commission. The opposition alleges that many decisions of the Election Commission, led by Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, were taken unilaterally. In protest against these allegations, opposition leaders from the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, along with MPs from various parties, have taken to the streets.

19 opposition parties' MPs are marching under the banner of Save Democracy, demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi are present in the march from Parliament House to the Election Commission, while leaders from AAP and DMK are not participating.

MPs have arrived carrying the Save Democracy banner and are chanting 'Gyanesh Kumar resign'. Security has been increased on Parliament Marg, Jantar Mantar, and outside the Election Commission .

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Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi are sitting on a dharna outside the Akashvani campus.

The Election Commission office is 270 meters away from Akashvani. The opposition had marched from the new Parliament to the Election Commission. The protest has been ongoing for three hours until 1 PM. The police stopped the opposition MPs three times. During this, Rahul climbed the barricades holding the tricolor.

Rahul was seen holding a poster that read 'Gyanesh, it's done bro'. This is the seventh protest against the Election Commission in Delhi and Mumbai in the past five days.

Amid the protests by INDIA alliance MPs, Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi reached the gate of Akashvani Bhawan in an attempt to reach the Election Commission office.

Congress General Secretary and Wayanad MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra was detained by Delhi Police during the march.

Samajwadi Party MP Zia-ur-Rehman Bark climbed the police barricade near the NITI Aayog office while heading to the Election Commission with fellow MPs.

RJD MP Manoj Jha said,

"We will try, but if arrogance is at this level, it also indicates fear. Slogans are being raised, there is noise in every alley, Modi-Gyanesh are thieves. Now the puppeteers holding the strings are also being mentioned."

Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav said,

"Allegations have been made against the Election Commission before; the Election Commission has been dishonest in 2017, 2019, 2022, 2024, and played an open game in Bengal... who can forget the Chandigarh incident?"

Opposition Leader in the Rajya Sabha and Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge, along with Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, are participating in the march. TMC MP Abhishek Banerjee and Samajwadi Party President Akhilesh Yadav are also part of the protest. Amid the presence of leaders from various opposition parties, MPs are questioning the functioning of the Election Commission and its decision-making process.

The protest march began from the Makar Dwar of the Parliament complex. MPs gathered here moved towards the Election Commission headquarters, registering their opposition against the unilateral decisions taken under the leadership of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. This march from Parliament to the Election Commission is an attempt to publicly present the opposition's allegations related to the electoral process.

The protest march is being live-streamed on Rahul Gandhi's official X handle. This is allowing viewers to see the activities of the leaders and MPs participating in the march. This demonstration, involving Congress and other opposition parties, is focused on the alleged issue of 'vote theft'.

It has also come to light that the Biju Janata Dal, the party of former Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, is participating in this protest march. According to Congress communication in-charge and spokesperson Jairam Ramesh, the BJD has joined the opposition march heading towards the Election Commission headquarters. Ramesh has confirmed the party's participation.

The participation of BJD has broadened the coalition of parties in the march. The joining of BJD with major leaders from Congress, TMC, and Samajwadi Party is a notable aspect of this protest. Opposition leaders allege that some decisions taken under Gyanesh Kumar's leadership were unilateral and involved irregularities. These allegations are being conveyed to the Election Commission headquarters through the march. The available information does not provide a detailed account of all the decisions being challenged by the opposition during this protest.

The presence of opposition leaders from both the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha gives this march a broad representation. The participation of Kharge and Rahul Gandhi, along with Abhishek Banerjee and Akhilesh Yadav, indicates that several opposition parties are registering a joint protest on this issue. The gathering of MPs at the Makar Dwar of Parliament and their movement towards the Election Commission has been the main event of the protest.

This march has brought the ongoing political controversy regarding 'vote theft' and the decisions of the Election Commission back to the forefront. The opposition is questioning the role of the Chief Election Commissioner. It is noteworthy that the INDIA alliance had also marched from Parliament House to the Election Commission office on August 11, 2025, which included Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge, Sharad Pawar, and 25 opposition parties.

Samajwadi Party MP Dharmendra Yadav said,

Since SIR was announced, the Samajwadi Party and Akhilesh Yadav have been strongly opposing it, and the entire opposition is against it. The other two election commissioners have also proven that Gyanesh Kumar is continuously making decisions against the country's democracy, constitution, and law at his own discretion. The opposition has been against this from the beginning, is still against it, and will continue to protest until he is removed.