Rahul, Priyanka Gandhi Released After 8 PM as Delhi Police Block INDIA Bloc's Jantar Mantar Sit-In

Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi and Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra were released from police custody a little after 8 pm on Wednesday, hours after Delhi Police physically removed them from a roadside sit-in in central Delhi and held them at separate locations. It was the second straight day that opposition leaders were detained while pressing their demand for the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, a campaign that began with Tuesday's march on the Election Commission (see our earlier coverage).

How the day unfolded

INDIA bloc MPs met over lunch on Janpath at a gathering hosted by Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, then boarded buses for Jantar Mantar, the capital's designated protest site. Police stopped the convoy at the roundabout near the Shangri-La hotel before it could get there, and the MPs got off and sat down on the road.

What followed was a forcible clearance. Personnel lifted Rahul Gandhi onto their shoulders and put him in a police bus, while a large contingent of women officers removed Priyanka Gandhi and other women leaders, who had been lying on the road holding copies of the Constitution. Several Congress leaders climbed on top of the bus carrying Rahul Gandhi, and one sat on its bonnet. Rahul Gandhi was taken to the Barakhamba Road police station; Priyanka Gandhi and others were held at Chhatrasal Stadium. Other opposition MPs were also detained. Congress later said the bus taking Rahul Gandhi away had a punctured tyre near Agrasen ki Baoli.

Earlier in the afternoon, protesters pulled down BJP hoardings near Janpath as the buses moved toward the protest site, and student activists climbed onto a police riot-control vehicle.

What the leaders said

Priyanka Gandhi accused police of manhandling MPs who had only asked to meet the election commissioners, saying she had been scratched and thrown to the ground. Rahul Gandhi, in a post on X while being driven away, said the opposition would not stop until Gyanesh Kumar resigns. In an attached video he alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat and the CEC had attacked the Constitution, and said they would be brought to justice.

Earlier in the day, responding to a fresh FIR filed over Tuesday's protest at Akashvani Bhawan, he said 45 cases were now registered against him and that he wanted the number to reach 100, calling each one a medal.

Kharge said the opposition was ready to take to the streets as often as needed and to face arrests or legal cases. K C Venugopal said the party would return in larger numbers in the coming days. Jairam Ramesh used the moment to take a swipe at the We Will Do It slogan the Prime Minister launched on Wednesday at an event marking his 25 years as head of government.

The wider campaign

The opposition's grievance centres on the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls, which it alleges has wrongly struck off large numbers of voters, and on the way the CEC was appointed. On a separate track, a plea filed in the Supreme Court on Wednesday seeks the recall of a split verdict on the law governing the appointment of the CEC and election commissioners.

The Aam Aadmi Party, which skipped Tuesday's march, joined Congress and Left workers in a separate protest outside the Delhi Chief Electoral Officer's office on Wednesday. AAP Delhi chief Saurabh Bharadwaj announced a nationwide protest on October 10 with Jantar Mantar as its centre, backed by Left parties and student groups.

What to watch

The BJP has previously rejected the campaign as an attempt to weaken constitutional institutions. With Congress promising repeated mobilisation and AAP's October 10 call, the standoff between the opposition and Delhi Police over access to Jantar Mantar looks set to continue, while the legal fight over how the CEC was appointed plays out in the Supreme Court.

This is an original summary based on public reporting. See our editorial policy for how we source, write, and correct our stories.