The INDIA bloc’s march to the Election Commission headquarters that ended with the detention of Rahul Gandhi and his sister Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, had started early. But by evening, only a handful of MPs remained — besides the Leader of the Opposition and his sister, there were Congress General Secretary (Organization) KC Venugopal, Punjab Lok Sabha MP Charanjit Singh Channi, and Rajya Sabha MP Pawan Khera. The sit-down protest was in progress within the Akashvani Bhavan complex, from where the Gandhis were detained. The protest is still in progress.
It was, however, the Samajwadi Party MPs, who set the tone. Clad in red caps and red scarves, they stood out, holding red placards inscribed with various slogans. Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge has instructed all the party MPs to remain in Delhi, indicating that the protest will continue. The list of leaders proposed to meet the President includes the Leaders of the Opposition from both Houses (Mallikarjun Kharge and Rahul Gandhi), Mamata Banerjee, Akhilesh Yadav, Sharad Pawar, Omar Abdullah, Tejashwi Yadav, MA Baby, and D Raja (CPI).
The procession of around 200 MPs – heading for the Election Commission headquarters — were stopped shortly after they moved past the Transport Bhawan.
The placard held by SP MP Iqra Hasan from Kairana read, “One kachori, two samosas; Gyanesh, there is no trusting you”. Actor-turned politician Jaya Bachchan was seen sporting a red scarf and held a placard that read, “The Election Commission is discriminating; it is deleting PDA votes”.
