Rahul, Priyanka Among Opposition Leaders Detained During Protest March to EC Over Bihar Voter Roll Revision

New Delhi, August 11, 2025 – Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra were among several opposition MPs detained on Monday while marching from Parliament House to the Election Commission (EC) office to protest against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of Bihar’s electoral rolls.

The protest, which saw the participation of Mallikarjun Kharge, Sharad Pawar, Akhilesh Yadav, T. R. Baalu, Sanjay Raut, Derek O’Brien, and other MPs from the DMK, RJD, TMC, and Left parties, began at Parliament’s Makar Dwar with the national anthem. Participants wore white caps marked with a red cross over the words “SIR” and “vote chori,” and carried banners reading “SIR+Vote Theft=Murder of Democracy” and “SIR – Loktantra Par Vaar.”

Police stopped the march midway at Transport Bhawan, placing barricades and urging MPs via loudspeaker to halt. Despite the blockade, TMC MPs Mahua Moitra and Sushmita Dev, along with Congress MPs Sanjana Jatav and Jothimani, climbed the barricades to raise slogans and demand the rollback of the SIR.

Opposition parties allege that the EC’s voter roll revision is aimed at disenfranchising voters in Bihar ahead of this year’s assembly elections. The Election Commission has rejected the charges, but the issue has paralysed Parliament since the Monsoon Session began on July 21, with repeated disruptions and minimal legislative activity except for discussions on Operation Sindoor.