CONGRESS leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra were among the around 250 people detained by Delhi Police on Tuesday night following an over eight-hour sit-in protest inside the Akashvani Bhawan premises, after they were stopped from marching towards the Election Commission’s office here. Around 50 MPs were among detainees, according to police sources.

 

The detainees were being taken to New Police Lines at Kingsway Camp. Police forcibly removed Rahul Gandhi, along with Congress MPs and leaders including K C Venugopal, Pawan Khera, K Suresh, Amarinder Singh Raja Warring and Imran Pratapgarhi, as the Akashvani premises were cleared of protesting MPs. Gandhi had earlier entered the Akashvani premises on Parliament Street and started a dharna after police thwarted an attempt by opposition MPs to march towards the Election Commission office, located around 300 metres away. The Opposition MPs were protesting over “vote chori” in the wake of media reports alleging irregularities in the functioning of the Election Commission and the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. The sit-in continued for more than eight hours before police began clearing the premises and detaining protesters.

 

Later, Rahul Gandhi and other Congress leaders were released, the party said. Earlier, several Opposition leaders, including Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and Trinamool Congress MPs Abhishek Banerjee and Derek O’Brien, were detained after police stopped the march. Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi along with Leaders of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge and other MPs were earlier stopped by security personnel on Parliament Street in front of the Akashvani Bhawan and the NITI Aayog office during their march to demand Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation. Action will be take against PM Modi, Shah, Bhagwat, CEC for ‘treason’: Rahul: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Tuesday alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat have “hijacked” the country with the help of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar by carrying out “vote chori”, and asserted that action will be taken against all of them for committing “treason”. Gandhi asserted that nobody is going to escape accountability. “I am not interested in what the BJP says. I am standing here to protect democracy in the country. Along with me, 300 Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha MPs had come and they are also trying to protect democracy,” Gandhi said.“Narendra Modi, Amit Shah and Mohan Bhagwat and CEC Gyanesh Kumar have finished off democracy in the country. The whole country believes this, the youth of the country also believe this. The police people who were stopping me are also saying this. The reality is known to everyone,” the Leader of Oppn in the Lok Sabha said.