Delhi Police Detain Opposition MPs at Electoral Rolls Protest

Delhi Police detained Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and other opposition lawmakers during a protest in central Delhi on Wednesday, after officers stopped them from proceeding toward Jantar Mantar. The demonstrators were protesting Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the revision of electoral rolls. The INDIA bloc MPs had sought to reach the designated protest site, but police barricades blocked their way. They then staged a sit-in near a central Delhi roundabout, raising slogans demanding Kumar’s resignation. Several lawmakers were taken away by police; one report said they were later released. Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra were among those detained, as was Trinamool Congress MP Derek O’Brien. The confrontation followed a separate opposition protest on Tuesday at Akashvani Bhavan. Delhi Police registered a case against Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi and other INDIA bloc MPs over allegations that they entered the premises without permission during that demonstration. Congress leaders said police used force on Wednesday. Priyanka Gandhi Vadra alleged that women police personnel scratched her and threw protesters to the ground.