Thousands of Congress workers, led by Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee president Devender Yadav, staged a dharna at Rajghat on Thursday to protest against the Delhi Police action during Opposition protests over demands for the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
The Congress workers assembled at Mahatma Gandhi’s memorial and raised slogans against the BJP-led government and the Election Commission. The protest was part of the Opposition’s continuing demonstrations over allegations of irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
The Election Commission and BJP have rejected allegations of political bias in the revision process.
Yadav said the party workers had gathered at Rajghat to protest what he described as the “high-handed” action of the Delhi Police against Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi during his attempts to reach the Election Commission.
“Today, I see no other way except Rajghat. At Mahatma Gandhi’s memorial, we have come to pray that good sense prevails upon this government, a government that is working to snatch away the constitutional rights of the people,” Yadav said while the workers were on their way to Rajghat.
He said people had the right to protest and raise their concerns if they believed the government or authorities had acted wrongly.
Yadav alleged that Rahul Gandhi had been stopped from reaching the Election Commission and subjected to police action while raising the issue of alleged “vote theft”.
The Congress leader also criticised the treatment of women protesters, including Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, during the recent demonstrations.
The Congress said its workers would continue protests until Kumar resigned. The party also demanded action against the CEC over its allegations concerning the SIR exercise.
The dharna at Rajghat came amid heightened security in central Delhi. Delhi Police had imposed prohibitory orders at Rajghat ahead of the planned opposition gathering, while traffic restrictions were also announced for the area.
BJP alleges ‘misbehaviour’ by Cong, AAP during protests
Delhi BJP spokesperson Praveen Shankar Kapoor on Thursday alleged that the Aam Aadmi Party and Congress were engaged in a competition to “outdo one another” in what he termed “misbehaviour” during protests.
Kapoor alleged that women police personnel and journalists had been mistreated during recent protests by Opposition parties. He also alleged that food was ordered for protesters during demonstrations, describing the gatherings as being turned into a “picnic”.
Referring to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Kapoor claimed that video clips showed him allegedly ordering food in a red bag from Khan Chacha during the protests. He said the Opposition was attempting to create confusion because, according to him, it had no answers on issues concerning the people.
