Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi with Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra during INDIA bloc MPs protest against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar near Jantar Mantar, in New Delhi on October 7
| Photo Credit: ANI
Three fresh FIRs have been registered against Congress leaders, including Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhiand Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, in connection with the INDIA bloc’s protest in central Delhi on Wednesday (October 7, 2026) against the revision of electoral rolls and demanding the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, Delhi Police sources said on Thursday (October 8, 2026).
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The latest cases relate to allegations of assaulting and obstructing police personnel deployed during the protest, damaging a police vehicle and staging an unauthorised protest, a police source close to the matter told The Hindu.
The FIRs are separate from the cases registered following the INDIA bloc’s protest on Tuesday (October 6, 2026). The police had earlier booked Opposition leaders in connection with the previous demonstration, including for forcible entry (or criminal trespass) into Akashvani Bhavan.
The fresh cases were registered after a police constable deployed for crowd control alleged that protesters surrounded and assaulted him during Wednesday’s (October 7, 2026) demonstration.
The constable, identified as Ankit Kasana and posted with the Parliament Police, alleged that a group of around 30 to 35 protesters, including men and women, surrounded him while the police tried to manage the crowd during Mr. Gandhi’s detention. He alleged that the protesters tore his uniform and attacked him.
Mr. Kasana was subsequently 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.
The police alleged that protesters damaged a police vehicle, smashing its windows, during Wednesday’s (October 7, 2026) demonstration, while Congress workers punctured the tyre of a bus carrying detained protesters.
On Wednesday (October 7, 2026), Mr. Gandhi, Ms. Vadra and around 80 other leaders were detained by the Delhi police after the protesters gathered in the Jantar Mantar area. The police pushed the protesters into buses and took them away.
Congress workers allegedly punctured a tyre of one of the buses being used to transport the protesters. Videos of the incident went viral on social media platforms. Mr. Gandhi was subsequently moved to another bus and taken to a police station on Barakhamba Road, where he remained in detention for several hours before being released.
INDIA bloc leaders K.C. Venugopal, Pawan Khera, A.A. Rahim and Sivadasan were among those detained along with the Gandhis.
A senior police official said the force had observed a growing pattern of “competition” among organisations staging protests, with groups increasingly seeking to make their 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.
Another INDIA bloc protest was carried out on Thursday (October 8, 2026), prompting the Delhi Police to reinforce security arrangements across central Delhi. These successive protests have resulted in major traffic restrictions and heightened police presence in the heart of the capital.
Published – October 08, 2026 11:18 am IST
