'Fighting for democracy': Oppn MPs detained amid stir over 'vote chori', released later

New Delhi: Wearing distrust of the Election Commission on their sleeves, Opposition MPs led by Rahul Gandhi on Monday marched to the poll body headquarters ‘Nirvachan Sadan’ from Parliament to protest against what they called ‘vote chori’ (vote theft) “facilitated to help” the ruling BJP.

MPs with posters on vote theft in various languages started their march, which comes close on the heels of Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls, from Parliament’s ‘Makar Dwar’ at 11:30 am after singing the national anthem but were stopped by police near PTI headquarters on Parliament Street.

The march started after both Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha adjourned till 2 pm within minutes of its convening at 11 am following vociferous protests by the Opposition MPs, who were wearing caps and holding banners and posters, which read ‘Cancel SIR, Stop Vote Chori’, ‘SIR+Vote Theft=Murder of Democracy’, ‘SIR par Chuppi Kyu’ and ‘SIR - Loktantra Par Vaar’.

The MPs, including Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Akhilesh Yadav, K C Venugopal, Tiruchi Siva, Derek O’Brien, Manoj K Jha, Manickam Tagore, Supriya Sule and Kanimozhi among others, tried to proceed to the EC office barely half-a-kilometre away but the heavy police contingent barricaded the road. It was not just I.N.D.I.A. MPs, AAP lawmakers also joined the march.

Some MPs sat on the road raising slogans while a bunch of women lawmakers Sanjana Jatav, Sushmita Dev, Jothimani and Sagarika Ghose climbed the barricade and raised slogans even as Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge and NCP (SP)’s Sharad Pawar, who did not walk, joined them later.

Akhilesh jumped the barricades at one point along with some other MPs. Priyanka was seen shouting slogans against Prime Minister Narendra Modi while being taken to the police station after being detained. Two MPs – Mahua Moitra and Mitali Bag – fainted and Rahul was seen helping Mitali to be taken to another vehicle.

As they were detained, Rahul Gandhi said, “When we were going to meet the EC, all the MPs of the I.N.D.I.A. alliance were stopped and taken into custody. The truth of vote theft is now before the country. This fight is not political—it is a fight to protect democracy, the Constitution, and the right to ‘one person, one vote’.”

“The united opposition and every voter in the country demands: a clean and transparent voter list. And, we will secure this right at all costs,” he told reporters. The protesting MPs were taken to Parliament Street Police Station from where they were released a little after 2 pm.

Kharge, who was also detained along with Rahul, said the protest is a fight to protect people's right to vote and a struggle to save democracy and the INDIA bloc will expose this BJP's conspiracy. “BJP's cowardly dictatorship will not work…The allies of the I.N.D.I.A bloc will surely expose this BJP conspiracy to shred the Constitution.”

In between, the EC said they have given permission to 30 leaders to meet the Chief Election Commissioner and two Election Commissioners but the Opposition rejected it with Congress General Secretary (Organisation) Jairam Ramesh saying they had sought a meeting of all MPs and “not a delegation”.

The march came days after Rahul held a press conference and accused the EC of colluding with the BJP and presenting an analysis claiming that there were around one lakh voters in Mahadevapura Assembly segment of Bangalore Central Lok Sabha seat from where the saffron party MP won.

The Opposition has been protesting against the SIR in Bihar and demanding an immediate discussion on the issue in Parliament, leading to disruptions owing to the government’s reluctance to hold a debate citing rules and precedence.