Rahul Gandhi, 10+ Opposition Leaders Detained in Fiery Protest Against India’s Election Commission — Political Tensions Soar
Rahul Gandhi and over 10 opposition leaders detained during a high-voltage protest against India’s Election Commission. Know the 5 key reasons behind the unrest and its impact on 2025 politics
NEW DELHI, Aug 11 (Reuters) – Dozens of Indian opposition leaders were detained in New Delhi on Monday as they shouted slogans, jumped barricades and marched to the Election Commission in a rare public protest against what they say are electoral malpractices.
The credibility of elections has rarely been questioned in recent decades in the world’s most populous democracy. Some analysts say the opposition accusations could damage Prime Minister Narendra Modi as he navigates one of the toughest periods of his 11 years in office.
Around 300 opposition leaders, including Rahul Gandhi of the main opposition Congress party, marched from parliament to the office of the independent election panel but were stopped by police some distance away.
The protesters shouted slogans against the panel and Modi’s government, saying elections were being “stolen”, and tried to push past barricades before being detained and taken away in buses.
“This fight is not political. This fight is to save the constitution,” Gandhi told reporters. “We want a clean, pure voters’ list.”
Gandhi and Congress have alleged that voters’ lists in states where the party lost are corrupted, with voters’ names deleted or included more than once to rig elections in favour of Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party.
Opposition parties have also criticised the election panel’s decision to revise the voters’ list in the key northern state of Bihar just before state elections due later this year, saying it aims to disenfranchise large numbers of poor voters.
The BJP and the Election Commission have rejected the accusations.
The commission has said that changes in voters’ lists are shared with political parties and all complaints are investigated thoroughly. It has also said that voters’ lists need to be revised to remove dead voters or those who have relocated to other parts of the country, among others.
Congress and its allies have fared poorly in two state elections that they had expected to win after an impressive show in last year’s parliamentary vote, which saw BJP losing its outright majority and remaining in power only with the help of regional parties.
Congress has also complained about electronic voting machines and said the counting process is not fair, charges rejected by the election panel.
The BJP said opposition parties were trying to create a “state of anarchy” by sowing seeds of doubt about the electoral process.
“They are in a state of bankruptcy because of their continuous losses,” federal minister Dharmendra Pradhan told reporters on Monday.
In a dramatic escalation of political unrest, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and more than 10 opposition leaders were detained in New Delhi on Tuesday during a high-intensity protest against the Election Commission of India (ECI). The demonstration, organized by a coalition of opposition parties, accused the ECI of bias and failing to ensure free and fair elections ahead of the next general polls.
The protest began near Jantar Mantar, where senior leaders from the INDIA bloc — an alliance of multiple opposition parties — gathered to voice grievances over alleged irregularities in the election process. The demonstrators chanted slogans, carried placards, and demanded urgent reforms in the functioning of the Election Commission.
Rahul Gandhi, dressed in a white kurta-pyjama, was seen leading the march before police intervened. Footage from the scene shows Delhi Police officers surrounding Gandhi and other leaders, escorting them into waiting police buses. Among those detained were senior Congress leaders, Trinamool Congress representatives, and members from the Left and regional parties.
Allegations of Election Commission Bias
Opposition parties accuse the ECI of favoring the ruling party in candidate clearances, campaign restrictions, and election scheduling.
Concerns Over EVM Manipulation
Protesters demanded transparency in Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) operations and called for a return to paper ballot systems.
Unequal Media Coverage
Leaders alleged that state-run and private media platforms are giving disproportionate coverage to ruling party campaigns while sidelining opposition voices.
Delay in Addressing Complaints
Opposition leaders criticized the ECI for taking weeks — or sometimes months — to respond to formal complaints of model code violations.
Demand for Independent Oversight
The INDIA bloc urged the formation of an independent election monitoring body to ensure accountability beyond the ECI’s current structure.
Delhi Police defended the detentions, citing violations of Section 144 — a law prohibiting unlawful assembly in certain areas. Officials claimed that the protest had not received prior permission and risked disrupting public order. Police later confirmed that the detained leaders would be released after routine formalities.
The detentions have sparked a wave of political reactions across the country. Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge condemned the police action, calling it “an assault on democracy”. Trinamool Congress leader Derek O’Brien tweeted that the arrests show “the ruling regime’s fear of public dissent.”
On the other hand, leaders from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) dismissed the protest as a “desperate political stunt”, accusing the opposition of trying to undermine faith in democratic institutions.
With general elections looming, the incident is likely to deepen the political divide and further energize opposition campaigns. Analysts believe the arrests could boost public sympathy for the INDIA bloc, especially among voters concerned about democratic freedoms. However, others caution that prolonged street protests could alienate moderate voters seeking stability.
