Published : 08 Oct 2026, 12:32 AM
Updated : 08 Oct 2026, 12:32 AM
Indian police detained opposition leader Rahul Gandhi and several lawmakers for the third time in two days on Wednesday as they staged an unannounced protest demanding the resignation of the election chief over a controversial revision of voter lists.
Opposition parties, student groups and the youth-led “Cockroach” movement have held near-daily demonstrations calling for Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar to step down. The protests followed an Indian Express report on disagreements within the election commission over the updating of voter lists, raising concerns among opposition parties about its neutrality.
Gandhi and other opposition lawmakers also protested on Tuesday, seeking a meeting with Kumar and his deputies before police broke up their gathering and briefly detained them.
Wednesday’s protest began after a lunch meeting organised by Gandhi’s Congress party at a restaurant in central Delhi, near Jantar Mantar, the designated site for demonstrations.
“Yesterday...Delhi Police stopped us and said you cannot protest here...so today...we will go to the designated protest site,” Gandhi told reporters before boarding a bus with other lawmakers.
The lawmakers held posters reading “no vote theft, no democracy theft” and “election commission, not BJP commission”, referring to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party.
Hundreds of Congress members accompanied the bus on foot as police and paramilitary personnel were deployed in riot gear. Police closed roads leading to Jantar Mantar, forcing the bus to take a detour.
Gandhi later stepped off the bus and stood among protesters and security personnel. Visuals showed police taking him and his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra away in separate vehicles. Police did not immediately comment on the detentions.
New Political Challenge to Modi
The demonstrations represent a fresh political challenge to Modi midway through his third term, months after protests led by the youth movement forced the resignation of his education minister over exam paper leaks.
The election commission and the BJP have denied allegations of wrongdoing over the voter list revision, while Kumar has not publicly commented on the issue.
The protests have continued as opposition parties demand greater scrutiny of the electoral roll revision and Kumar’s resignation, with the confrontation adding to political tensions in New Delhi.
