Delhi Police have registered multiple FIRs naming Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra over the opposition's protests against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, as demonstrations over alleged irregularities in India's voter lists entered a third day on Thursday — deepening a political standoff neither side shows signs of ending.
Three Days of Protests, and Now FIRs
The confrontation began October 6, when INDIA bloc MPs marched from Parliament to the Election Commission headquarters (Nirvachan Sadan) demanding CEC Gyanesh Kumar's resignation over the controversial Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter lists. Police stopped the march; leaders then staged an 8+ hour sit-in inside Akashvani Bhavan. About 260 people, including 10 MPs, were detained and released after 10 p.m.
On October 7, buses carrying MPs to Jantar Mantar were stopped, and 91 people including MPs were detained. Priyanka Gandhi lay on the road with TMC MP Mahua Moitra; Congress accused police of using "brute force."
Delhi Police then registered a first FIR — against Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and others — for allegedly forcibly entering Akashvani Bhavan without permission, on a complaint by Akashvani staffers, with charges including criminal trespass. Police said no permission was sought or granted for the march. A second FIR accuses the two Gandhis of assaulting police personnel and obstructing government work near Jantar Mantar, registered under Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita provisions on assault and obstruction of public servants; NDTV reported that three FIRs in total were registered over the Wednesday protest. Rahul Gandhi, named in the FIRs, responded: "45 FIRs under his belt, aiming for 100" — adding that "every FIR is a medal on my chest."
The Opposition's Case vs. the EC's Defence
The opposition's core allegation is "vote chori" — that the SIR of voter rolls, begun last year in Bihar and expanded across most states, has been used to delete opposition-leaning voters. Over 130 million names have been removed so far, with millions of appeals filed. Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge called the Election Commission "a puppet in the hands of the government," while Rahul Gandhi alleged that Prime Minister Modi, Amit Shah and Mohan Bhagwat had "hijacked" the country with the CEC's help, and insisted "Gyanesh Kumar will have to resign."
The EC and the BJP deny every allegation: the Commission says the revision aims to remove duplicate, deceased or ineligible entries and has directed officials to re-register eligible voters wrongly omitted; EC sources add that no party ever requested a meeting with Commission officials. BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said Congress leaders "have decided to establish anarchy in the country and attack institutions," and the party separately alleged a video shows Rahul Gandhi pushing a woman police officer during the Jantar Mantar protest.
A Viral Flashpoint: the Pro-Modi Slogan Clash
On day three, a man identified as Faheem Nazir, a Kashmiri from Srinagar who describes himself as a PM Modi fan, raised pro-Modi slogans at the opposition protest in Delhi and was surrounded and thrashed by Congress workers, with video going viral. BJP spokesperson Pradeep Bhandari condemned the attack on a citizen raising slogans for the Prime Minister; the protesters' side alleged he was verbally abusing Rahul Gandhi.
Meanwhile the protests spread: Congress supporters marched in Telangana, the RJD demonstrated in Bihar, and hundreds of "Cockroach" (CJP) youth movement supporters rallied in Bengaluru with posters reading "Every name counts, Every vote matters" and "Stop the Murder of Democracy." Influencer Dhruv Rathee, actor Prakash Raj and CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke joined the demonstrations.
The takeaway: A fight over who gets to vote has become a fight over protest itself — with opposition leaders booked for trespass and assault, the government crying "anarchy," and a viral beating sharpening the divide. The SIR battle is now India's defining political confrontation.
Watch: "Rahul Gandhi Vows To Face Even 100 Cases As INDIA Bloc Heads To Jantar Mantar" (ABP Live) — coverage of the FIRs against Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi and the INDIA bloc's day-two march to Jantar Mantar.
Music in this post's reel: Kevin MacLeod - Hitman (incompetech.com), licensed under CC BY 3.0