New Delhi, Oct 11 (PTI) Intensifying their agitation against CEC Gyanesh Kumar, opposition parties would march to the Supreme Court on Monday with the Leaders of Opposition in Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha – Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge – seeking time to meet the Chief Justice of India (CJI) to raise the “vote chori” issue.
Both Gandhi and Kharge have written to CJI Surya Kant for a meeting with him between 4 and 5 PM on Monday to hand over a memorandum.
Rahul Gandhi said opposition parties, civil society and youth would march to the Supreme Court to submit the memorandum to the CJI on behalf of the country, demanding an end to ‘vote chori’, CEC Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation, halting of SIR and switching back to paper ballot.
The Congress has termed Monday’s protest as “Chalo Delhi – March for Democracy” and said they would converge at 1.30 PM at Connaught Place-Barakhamba Road junction.
In a post on X, Gandhi said the march to the Supreme Court would be by Indians united beyond parties, gender, caste, community and state.
“Yesterday, the nation’s young came out in Delhi to peacefully protest. They came with love in their hearts, not hatred or anger. They were beaten, both by cops and BJP goons. This is not the India we want.
“Tomorrow, we will march to the Supreme Court as Indians, united beyond party, gender, caste, community and state. Youth, all opposition parties, civil society groups, all those who believe in democracy and stand by the Constitution of India, will walk with us,” he said in his post.
“Narendra Modi, Amit Shah, Ajit Doval and Mohan Bhagwat cannot silence India’s voice. These cowards cannot intimidate us. They will have to step aside. We will march together, with love, brotherhood and patriotism. Daro mat,” he also said, adding that “tomorrow all of India” will march to the Supreme Court.
Gandhi also alleged that protesters were beaten up by the police and BJP’s goons on Saturday.
He said they were marching in protest as citizens of the country only because they wanted to protect the Constitution.
Kharge earlier said in Bengaluru that he and Gandhi have sought a meeting with the CJI on Monday to seek his intervention on the issue of “vote chori”.
On Friday, leaders of various opposition parties of the INDIA bloc marched from Parliament to Vijay Chowk and later handed over a memorandum to President Droupadi Murmu.
Speaking in Bengaluru, Kharge also said Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah have “created chaos” across the country, and the heavy police deployment and detentions during protests on Saturday show the government’s “fear” of the youth agitation.
“We have sought a time between 4 and 5 pm. We will also apprise him, as we cannot demand. Only with folded hands, we can request him,” Kharge said about the meeting with CJI Surya Kant.
“With folded hands we will apprise him of the situation. Chaos is being created in the country by the home minister and the prime minister, and everywhere an undeclared emergency is imposed,” Kharge said, adding that they have both written letters to the CJI.
He posted a video of his comments made to the media in Bengaluru on X.
He said, “I have written a letter, and Shri Rahul Gandhi has also written a letter. We have scheduled a meeting between 4 and 5 PM, during which we will apprise him of the situation,” he wrote on X.
Referring to the security clampdown on Saturday in Delhi, Kharge said roads were blocked, communication channels were disrupted, access to the airport was restricted and mobile networks were shut down.
“Yesterday, nearly 32,000 police personnel and 7,500 CRPF personnel were deployed. This itself shows how much fear the government has of the youth agitation,” he claimed.
All of this demonstrates that the government does not want democracy to function peacefully in India, he alleged. “We will continue our fight to protect democracy and the constitutional rights of the people”.
AICC general secretary K C Venugopal said every time one thinks that Amit Shah’s “Delhi Police couldn’t hit new lows, they go lower”.
He alleged that reporters from agencies, Malayalam journalists, independent bloggers and YouTubers – especially women – were detained and assaulted and termed it “completely unforgivable”.
“The Delhi Police has turned the entire city into a torture chamber where innocent citizens exercising their fundamental rights are being chased, thrashed and detained,” he alleged, adding that all this, while “vigilante groups aligned with the ruling regime are given a free hand to assault protesters – under full police protection”.
“We, the people of India, will succeed. Our satyagraha will win,” Venugopal said.
AICC general secretary Jairam Ramesh alleged that the “brutal use of force and tyrannical attempts to suppress the voices of students, youth, and opposition leaders” was an assault on the foundations of democracy in India.
“In the arrogance of power and the obstinacy of clinging to the chair at any cost, the Modi government has committed a grave insult to the Constitution.
“Weakening the country’s reputation and democratic institutions in the madness of power is treason against India,” Ramesh said.
The protest on Saturday, called by the CJP to demand Kumar’s resignation, witnessed widespread detentions across the national capital, with more than 7,000 people, including several opposition leaders and activists, detained.
Restrictions were imposed on metro and train services and internet was suspended in parts of Delhi as part of measures to stop the protesters from reaching Jantar Mantar.
Opposition parties have been protesting since Tuesday and have been demanding the immediate removal of CEC Gyanesh Kumar, accusing the prime minister and the BJP of “stealing” elections through “vote theft”.
INDIA bloc grouping took to the streets on Tuesday when they first marched from Parliament to the Election Commission but were stopped on the way, with Rahul Gandhi staging an eight-hour sit-in inside Akashvani Bhawan complex.
Opposition MPs met for lunch in central Delhi on Wednesday and Thursday, after which they staged a march, first to Jantar Mantar on the first day, and to Rajghat the next day.
The opposition’s aggressive push comes days after a report claimed internal differences within the poll body, with Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi objecting on record at least 14 times over the last 10 months, including on Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Last week, the INDIA bloc finalised a joint action plan on the SIR row, including holding rallies and “save democracy” marches. PTI SKC RT
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