Fresh FIRs have been registered against Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra over allegations of assaulting police personnel, obstructing officers and damaging a police vehicle during an INDIA bloc protest in central Delhi on October 7, according to Delhi Police sources cited by The Hindu. The cases were filed after Opposition leaders and supporters gathered near Jantar Mantar to protest the revision of electoral rolls and demand the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
The latest FIRs are separate from cases registered after the INDIA bloc’s demonstration on October 6, including one related to alleged forcible entry, or criminal trespass, into Akashvani Bhavan. Police are also registering another case concerning the staging of an unauthorised protest, the report said.
The fresh cases followed a complaint by Ankit Kasana, a constable posted with the Parliament Police. Kasana told the police that a group of around 30 to 35 protesters surrounded him while officers were managing the crowd during Rahul Gandhi’s detention. He alleged that the protesters abused him, tore his uniform and attacked him with their fingernails and teeth. The constable was later taken to Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital for a medical examination.
“The FIR was lodged after the statement of the personnel who were assaulted during the protest,” a police official said, according to The Hindu.
Police also alleged that protesters damaged a police vehicle by smashing its windows. Congress workers were accused of puncturing the tyre of a bus being used to transport detained protesters. Videos of the incident circulated on social media, while the police moved Rahul Gandhi to another bus and took him to a police station on Barakhamba Road, where he remained in detention for several hours before being released.
Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and around 80 other leaders were detained by the New Delhi police after protesters assembled in the Jantar Mantar area. Congress leaders K.C. Venugopal, Pawan Khera, A.A. Rahim and Sivadasan were among those detained, the report said.
The protests have created an expanding public-order and mobility challenge in the capital’s administrative core. Central Delhi contains major government offices, public institutions and high-traffic corridors, meaning repeated demonstrations bring additional barricading, diversions, security deployment and restrictions for commuters and other city users. The successive actions have already led to major traffic restrictions and a heightened police presence across the area.
A senior police official said the force had observed a growing pattern of “competition” among organisations staging protests, with groups seeking to make demonstrations more dramatic and attract greater attention. “There is now a competition between the various organisations staging protests to make them more dramatic and damage public property to get more attention,” the official said.
The INDIA bloc has continued to oppose the revision of electoral rolls, alleging that the process is being conducted without adequate safeguards and transparency. The Election Commission has rejected those allegations. The dispute has now produced consecutive days of demonstrations, detentions and criminal cases in central Delhi.
Another INDIA bloc protest was planned for October 8. Delhi Police said security arrangements would be reinforced across central Delhi, with barricades placed at several locations and additional personnel deployed at points expected to witness gatherings. Police officials said people found violating the law during the demonstration would be detained and cases registered.
