Neha Bora faces criticism over 'some people's representatives' remark as Congress supporters say, 'don't forget Rahul Gandhi'

AISA national president Neha Bora has faced criticism on social media after a post referring to "some people's representatives" was interpreted by several Congress supporters as a reference to Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi, even as others defended her remark as praise for those politicians who had stood with protesters. The controversy came amid intensified protests against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar and allegations of irregularities in the electoral process. Bora, who has been a prominent face of the student-led protests and has appeared alongside Rahul Gandhi during earlier demonstrations, has continued to call for wider political and civil society unity against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. 'Some people's representatives' remark triggers backlash The controversy began after Bora wrote on X: "Some people's representatives are doing their job and defending democracy while others are busy counting down their days..." Bora made the remark while responding to a post by Kashmir-based Independent multimedia journalist Ahmer Khan that said Rahul Gandhi, along with other senior opposition leaders, had been forcibly removed by Delhi Police from a protest against the Election Commission over alleged irregularities in the electoral process. The post drew a response from Congress's Venisha G Kiba, who wrote: "Don't forget this Neha!" followed by a reference to Rahul Gandhi, saying he was the Leader of Opposition and had stood with the protesters. Some people's representatives are doing their job and defending democracy while others are busy counting down their days... -- Neha (@neha_aisa) October 6, 2026 Another user responded to Bora's post by pointing out that "Some people's representative" had a name -- Rahul Gandhi -- and described him as the Raebareli MP and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha. The user also pointed out that Bora had met Gandhi in July. Several Congress supporters interpreted the wording as diminishing Gandhi's role. One wrote: "Some people's representatives ? That person is the Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi who supported you during times of crisis." At the same time, another user defended Bora, saying the post was intended as praise for Rahul Gandhi for "doing his job when many of his fellow parliamentarians are not". The user said some Congress supporters had misunderstood the wording as trivialising Gandhi by suggesting that he represented only a few people, adding: "English is a tricky language sometimes." The backlash also drew comments from AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj, who urged political forces not to fight among themselves and instead unite against the BJP. A commentary account criticised Bora, saying she had once stood before Rahul Gandhi but was now casually referring to the Leader of Opposition as "some people". It also contrasted her student leadership with Gandhi's position in national politics and said Congress workers fighting on the ground should be promoted. Bora and Rahul Gandhi had appeared together during student protests The online controversy comes against the backdrop of Bora's earlier public appearance with Rahul Gandhi during the student agitation over alleged examination irregularities and the NEET paper leak issue. Three AISA student leaders -- national president Neha Bora, Delhi University AISA secretary Anjali and JNU Students' Union joint secretary Danish Ali -- were among the prominent faces seen alongside Gandhi during a press conference in July. Their appearance came after protests in Delhi and a police crackdown on students participating in a "Sansad chalo" march. Bora had been one of the key faces of the student protests, raising concerns over alleged irregularities and accountability in the examination system and the treatment of protesters. Gandhi used the press conference to raise concerns about the handling of the protests and demanded accountability from the government. The association between the student leaders and Gandhi had become part of the wider political context surrounding the latest social media controversy. Bora intensifies attack over SIR, calls for wider unity Bora has since emerged as one of the prominent voices in protests against CEC Gyanesh Kumar and the SIR exercise. On October 7, she said the protests had developed into a broader citizens' movement focused on democracy, electoral rolls and the right to protest. Recalling a citizens' call for a march on September 25, she said activists, lawyers and public representatives including political activist Yogendra Yadav, RTI activist Anjali Bhardwaj, Rajya Sabha MP Manoj Jha and TMC MP Mahua Moitra had joined the initiative. She said subsequent protests were held on October 2 in Delhi and Mumbai, claiming the participation showed that concerns over the electoral process and alleged voter disenfranchisement had become urgent. "The massive turnout in Mumbai on October 2 sends a clear message that if there is one urgent, the most urgent, issue at this point, it is the theft of democracy and the theft of votes," Bora said. She claimed the SIR could disenfranchise 13 crore people and said nearly 1,000 people were detained across Delhi during the October 2 protests. Referring to an October 4 march from India Gate to Jantar Mantar, she said around 3,000 people participated and alleged selective detention of protesters. Bora also recounted her own detention, saying she was isolated inside a private vehicle while other protesters were pushed away by police personnel. "I was the only protester inside, while the rest of the people in the vehicle were police personnel," she said. Protesters subsequently stopped the vehicle for nearly an hour, with women climbing onto its roof and others sitting in front of it. On October 6, Bora urged political forces beyond INDIA bloc constituents to unite against the BJP-led government over alleged deletion of names from voter lists. She also urged civil society to join a CJP protest in New Delhi on October 10. She claimed 13 crore names had been deleted during the SIR and demanded that the exercise be scrapped. "All governments elected after the SIR process are borne out of vote theft," she alleged. Bora said the protests involved lawyers, educationists and activists attempting to "stitch together a larger unity", adding: "Unity across party lines is being tried to be created." She also alleged that the Election Commission had misused its public office, saying, "The Election Commission, which should be the vanguard of democracy, misused its public office by being partisan towards a particular political party." CPI(ML) Liberation national general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya, whose party is affiliated to AISA, separately called for Gyanesh Kumar's immediate removal. He alleged that SIR had resulted in the voting rights of crores of people being taken away and demanded cancellation of the exercise and fresh elections in states where polls were held after SIR, particularly Bihar and West Bengal. Bhattacharya also claimed his party's survey of 10 of the 20 Bihar assembly seats it contested found 17 per cent wrongful deletions after house visits across 102 booths. He said the deletion-and-addition process had begun after the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, before the SIR exercise itself.