On October 6, 2026, opposition MPs from the INDIA bloc carried out a protest march from Parliament to Nirvachan Sadan—the Election Commission of India headquarters in New Delhi—demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged vote theft.
Barricades and Heavy Deployment Across New Delhi
The Delhi Police and Central Armed Police Forces deployed approximately 4,000 security personnel across the New Delhi district ahead of the demonstration. Multi-layered barricading went up along key stretches, including near the NITI Aayog building and Transport Bhawan, as authorities enforced prohibitory orders under Section 163 restricting public gatherings.
Security forces prevented the march from reaching the poll body’s headquarters after the opposition MPs gathered outside Parliament on Tuesday morning around 10:30 AM to 11:00 AM, carrying posters with slogans such as Save democracy
and Save my vote
and crossing Transport Bhawan. Samajwadi Party MPs climbed over police barriers near the NITI Aayog office while attempting to advance toward Nirvachan Sadan.
Dissenting Voices and Missing Alliances within the Bloc
Not all regional partners aligned with the day’s demonstration. Two key opposition parties, the DMK and the Aam Aadmi Party, stayed away from the march. AAP leader Sanjay Singh stated that his party would continue its independent campaign against irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision process.
Despite these absences, prominent figures maintained sharp rhetoric on the streets. Samajwadi Party MP Jaya Bachchan told reporters during the march that prayers to Ganesha would protect them against wrongdoing, stating, Ganesh ji doesn’t help in wrong things. We begin prayers with offering prayers to Ganesh. He will protect us.
Meanwhile, opposition leaders planned to meet President Droupadi Murmu on the same day to formally register their grievances regarding the electoral-roll revision exercise.
Disputes Over Voter Rolls and Legal Observations
The political confrontation centers on the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls and allegations of administrative manipulation summarized by the opposition under the slogan ‘vote chori’. The protest escalation followed a Supreme Court clarification on Monday stating the judiciary had not approved any modified version of Form 6, which is used for enrolling new voters during the SIR.
Chief Justice of India Surya Kant noted that the court never sanctioned any alterations to the form, stating, Any modified Form 6 has not been approved by us. Let’s be clear. When the record is produced, we would like to see who has modified.
Congress general secretary KC Venugopal seized upon the observation to attack the poll panel, calling the Election Commission the Cheating Commission of India
and asserting that after this much – after this much observation from the Supreme Court and the opposition parties, and two Commissioners’ remarks also, he is misleading the people.
Venugopal also claimed that every person of India wants to remove the Chief Election Commissioner. Only two people want to retain him – Prime Minister and Amit Shah.
Congress Plans Nationwide Campaign Against Gyanesh Kumar
Hours after the Supreme Court clarification, the Congress announced an intensified nationwide campaign named ‘Vote Bachao, Desh Bachao’ against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge chaired a meeting attended by Rahul Gandhi, general secretaries, in-charges, PCC presidents, and frontal organisation heads where the agitation strategy was finalized. The roadmap includes the first phase from October 10 to 20 featuring block-level bike rallies, cycle rallies, padyatras, and the burning of effigies of Gyanesh Kumar, followed by village chaupals run by party workers termed Vote Rakshaks
from October 25 to November 25 to identify unfairly deleted voters.
