LIVE: Rahul Vows to Defend Constitution, Reject Hatred
Rahul Gandhi says the INDIA bloc believes in love and non-violence, asserting that it will not allow the Constitution to be destroyed.
New Delhi: INDIA bloc leaders on Sunday marched in open vehicles from the Minto Road-Connaught Place junction towards Ramlila Maidan for a rally against alleged "vote chori", demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, TMC leaders Mamata Banerjee and Abhishek Banerjee, and other senior leaders joined the "Vote Bachao, Desh Bachao" march.
A large crowd of supporters and party workers walked alongside the procession, carrying flags and banners targeting Kumar and the Modi government. Crowds also gathered at Ramlila Maidan, raising slogans against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
The march comes a day after INDIA bloc leaders held a symbolic "public impeachment" of Kumar at Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge's residence. The Opposition has accused the CEC of facilitating large-scale deletion of voters' names and alleged electoral irregularities.
Mehbooba Mufti, addressing the INDIA bloc rally in Delhi, urges people to protect their constitutional rights, saying Jammu and Kashmir was “ruined” in 2019.
Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi, addressing the INDIA bloc's mega rally in Delhi, said, "We do not hate Narendra Modi, Amit Shah or Gyanesh Kumar. We are people who open the shop of love, not hatred. We believe in non-violence, and for me, there is no enemy. The voice of every citizen of India is more important to me than religion. That is my religion. We will not use violence, harm anyone or spread hatred. We will work with love, but we will not let you destroy the Constitution, no matter what happens."
Rahul Gandhi, addressing the INDIA bloc rally in Delhi, said Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar would be removed from his post and jailed. He alleged that elections, including the 2024 Lok Sabha and state polls, were won through "vote chori" using EVMs, adding that people across the country were determined to protect democracy and the Constitution. He said the movement represented the voices of India's youth, women, farmers and workers.
Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, addressing the INDIA bloc's 'Vote Bachao, Desh Bachao' rally at Ramlila Maidan, said, "The INDIA bloc and its allies have united against those who have weakened the country's democracy. The BJP knows it cannot win people's support and is therefore using the Election Commission. Who does not know that the West Bengal elections were looted? We in the INDIA bloc will not accept defeat. In the 2022 Uttar Pradesh elections, votes were stolen and names were removed from voter lists. We submitted affidavits to the Election Commission, but no action was taken on our complaints."
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge on Sunday accused the BJP of forming governments on "stolen" mandates and said Prime Minister Narendra Modi must go to save democracy. Addressing the INDIA bloc rally at Delhi's Ramlila Maidan, Kharge alleged that Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah were shielding Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and vowed to continue the fight against alleged electoral irregularities.
We will fight unitedly to remove Modi, protect Constitution, strengthen democracy and save country: Kharge at INDIA bloc rally.
“People have lost faith in Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. We don't want a non-impartial person trying to determine India's political future by deleting 130 million names from electoral rolls. People must be given their right to vote,” said Congress MP Shashi Tharoor at the INDIA bloc's mega rally.