India: Police halt opposition march as Rahul Gandhi takes election body to top court

Police in New Delhi on Monday stopped a protest march by the opposition INDIA bloc on Bhagwant Das Road, close to the Supreme Court. Under the banner "Chalo Dilli – March for Democracy", opposition leader Rahul Gandhi, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and leaders of other parties demanded the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. They accuse him of "vote theft" during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, which Al Jazeera said removed 133 million people from voter lists.

A delegation of 10 to 15 leaders was allowed to the court's filing counter. Shortly before it closed, Gandhi filed the petition "Rahul Gandhi v. Election Commission of India" through advocate S. Prasanna. Chief Justice Surya Kant on Sunday declined to meet the bloc, saying the matter was already before the court. Similar SIR cases are due to be heard on Tuesday, and LiveLaw reported the new petition could be considered alongside them.

"We will not back off until we get the resignation," Gandhi said. Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta of the ruling BJP wrote on X that the credibility of India's democracy cannot be made hostage to the opposition's political convenience. She pointed to an open letter from 124 former senior civil servants defending the Election Commission.