Barricades, Sting, and 'Khan Chacha': How the Gandhis kept protest going

What appeared to be the end of the INDIA bloc's protest to the Election Commission took an unexpected turn after Gandhi siblings found a way past the police barricades and into the Akashvani Bhawan premises.

The Opposition leaders had set out from Parliament Street to the Election Commission headquarters, barely 300 metres away, demanding action against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over allegations of electoral irregularities and the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. But the march was stopped by Delhi Police, with barricades put up on the routes.

Several Opposition MPs were also detained and taken away in buses. As the detentions mounted, only a few Congress leaders remained at the protest site.

Rahul climbs barricade

The drama began around noon when Rahul Gandhi climbed atop a police barricade near the NITI Aayog office on Sansad Marg. He was seen holding and waving the Tricolour flag as cameras captured the moment. He later climbed down as police began detaining MPs who were sitting on the road and protesting.

But the question is, was Rahul done with that? No. As detained MPs were being taken away, he suddenly moved towards a bus parked near Akashvani Bhawan, where Priyanka Gandhi Vadra was seated.

They walked into Akashvani Bhawan

As Rahul Gandhi was about to get into the bus, he and Priyanka exchanged a glance. Priyanka then got down.

The two siblings, along with their supporters, walked past the policemen and entered the Akashvani Bhawan premises, taking the protest to a new location and leaving the police confused and scrambling to respond.

Rahul was seen with Congress leaders K C Venugopal, Deepender Singh Hooda, Charanjeet Singh Channi, Pawan Khera, Imran Pratapgarhi and Praniti Shinde. The leaders settled under a tree inside the premises and insisted that they be allowed to meet the Election Commission.

"We represent the people of the country... we are their voice," Rahul told reporters.

"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," the leader of opposition in the Lok Sabha added.

From protest to break

Even as the confrontation with police continued, the Gandhi siblings were seen taking a breather during the prolonged protest. At one point, Rahul offered Priyanka Sting energy drink. She was seen smelling it before taking a sip.

Later during the protest Rahul was seen eating a roll from Khan Chacha while Priyanka sat beside him.

The informal breaks came as the Congress leaders continued their sit-in and maintained that they would not leave until they were allowed to meet the Election Commission.

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On claims that they are disrupting traffic and causing inconvenience, Rahul Gandhi said the police should then tell them "where can we stage a sit-in, and we will sit there".

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra also told a police officer that the inconvenience to commuters was being caused by the Delhi Police's repeated barricading of roads and routes across the city. She argued that since the protest began, police had been blocking multiple routes and even restricting access around metro stations, leading to traffic snarls and disruptions. The inconvenience, she said, was not being caused by Congress workers or those protesting on the streets, but by the police arrangements put in place to contain the agitation.

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Gandhis' face off with Delhi police

Their protest eventually escalated, with police moving in to remove Rahul and other leaders from the Akashvani Bhawan premises. Rahul was forcibly removed and briefly detained as the protest continued elsewhere.

But Priyanka remained at the centre of the agitation.

At one point, she was seen climbing the gated premises at Kingsway Camp, where Rahul had been taken after being removed from the protest site. She opened the gates, after which Congress workers entered the premises.

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As the protest stretched till late evening, Rahul said the Opposition MPs would continue to press for a meeting with the election commissioners.

"They will have to meet us... The MPs were disrespected. We have not done anything wrong. We want to go to the election commissioners and ask questions of them and tell them that they have done vote chori," Gandhi said.

But on the other hand, according to EC it had not received any request from Congress or any political party seeking a meeting.

By then, what had started as an INDIA bloc march from Parliament Street to the poll panel had turned into a day-long confrontation, with the Gandhis repeatedly defying police attempts to contain the protest.