Manas Dasgupta
NEW DELHI, Oct 29: The Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday urged people not to be deterred by the police and brave police lathis, if needed, to join the opposition INDIA bloc’s ‘Chalo Dilli’ march in large numbers on Sunday demanding the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process.
The Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha said the rally, scheduled to be held at Ramlila Maidan, was aimed at saving democracy, ending what the opposition calls “vote theft” and protecting the Constitution. He also urged student groups, irrespective of their political affiliations, to participate in the march.
In a post on X, the Congress leader said the BJP “will not have the guts to try any of their antics.” “Don’t worry about the police, don’t worry about lathis – the BJP will not have the guts to try any of their antics. Come march with us – we will walk together to protect the Constitution, to protect the Indian nation. I urge all student groups, regardless of your political affiliation – if you feel that India is under attack, if you feel you are under attack, your expression, your ideas, your way of thinking is under attack, come and join us. It will be a fantastic march, and it’s a march for the soul of this country. Looking forward to seeing all of you there,” he said.
In a video on X, Rahul Gandhi said it was a singular protest for the nation. “The ‘Chalo Dilli’ Ramlila March is a march to save democracy, to put an end to the theft of votes, and to protect the Constitution,” the LoP said.
This is not a march for any single political party; it is a march for the very soul of India. “To all those who are fed up with Narendra Modi, Amit Shah and Gyanesh Kumar, and everyone who wishes to save democracy and defend the Constitution, I invite you all to join,” he said.
“Don’t worry about the police, don’t worry about lathis – the BJP will not have the guts to try any of their antics. Come march with us – we will walk together to protect the Constitution, to protect the Indian nation,” he said.
The “Dilli Chalo” rally will be preceded by a “public impeachment” proceeding by the INDIA bloc against the CEC on Friday at Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge’s 10, Rajaji Marg residence, over alleged irregularities in the SIR exercise of electoral rolls. Former Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar will chair the bloc’s “public impeachment” of the CEC.
At its meeting on Thursday, the INDIA bloc partners decided to change their plan from holding a “mock Parliament” to public impeachment to avoid any controversy over alleged contempt of Parliament. The Congress leaders said they wish to steer clear of any action that could be construed as contempt of Parliament. So Friday’s event has been converted to a “People’s Impeachment (Jan Mahabhiyog)”, during which a motion for impeachment will be brought against the Chief Election Commissioner.
The responsibility for conducting this “People’s Impeachment” has been entrusted to former Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar, who will be assisted by a Samajwadi Party MP whose name is yet to be finalised, sources said.
The proceedings will begin at 3 pm and continue till 7.30 pm.
The arguments for the ‘People’s Impeachment’ will be initiated by the Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha, Mallikarjun Kharge, and concluded by the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi. Leaders from 19 political parties will speak, with an allotted time of 5 minutes each. The Samajwadi Party and the Trinamool Congress, however, have been granted 10 minutes each.
Individuals whose names have been removed from the electoral rolls will also be given an opportunity to speak. Three members of the civil society will also be among the speakers. Altogether, there will be around 30 speakers. The focus will be the removal of names from the electoral rolls – a process conducted by the poll panel that has affected 13.5 crore voters. The Congress claims the figure now is 16.5 crore.
The Congress and all the INDIA bloc parties will broadcast the ‘People’s Impeachment’ live on their YouTube channels and other social media platforms. The event will conclude with the national anthem, ‘Jana Gana Mana.’