PoliticsOpposition
INDIA bloc takes its 'vote chori' fight to Ramlila Maidan today; police clear the rally but not the march
Opposition leaders plan a noon march from Connaught Place to the ground to demand Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar's resignation. More than 4,000 police will be on duty and central Delhi faces diversions from 10 am to 5 pm.
Key points
- The INDIA bloc rally at Ramlila Maidan is permitted from 10 am to 5 pm.
- Police say no application was made for the noon march from Connaught Place.
- The BJP holds a counter march in Hari Nagar at 11 am with families of 1984 riot victims.
The INDIA bloc brings its campaign against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar to the streets of the capital on Sunday, with a rally at Ramlila Maidan from 10 am to 5 pm. The parties accuse the Election Commission of mass deletions during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, which they call “vote chori”, and want Kumar to resign.
Leaders are due to leave Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge’s residence in open buses for the Minto Road junction near Connaught Place, where a “Chalo Dilli” march is set to start at 12 noon and head past Ajmeri Gate to the ground. “See you tomorrow, let’s walk together!” Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi posted on Saturday. Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee are likely to attend.
The march may test the police. Delhi Police have cleared the gathering at the ground, but police sources said no application had been made for a march from Connaught Place, and that leaders could travel by private vehicle instead. The permission for the rally bars any procession from the ground and requires the crowd to disperse by 5 pm, with no overnight stay.
Crowds, police and traffic
The bloc says it expects up to 10 lakh people. Police put the figure at about 50,000, and the ground holds 30,000 to 40,000 once chairs and enclosures are in. More than 4,000 police personnel and central armed police companies are on duty, with the venue split into 14 zones and watched by over 200 CCTV cameras, drones and body-worn cameras.
Traffic will be diverted from 10 am to 5 pm at points including ITO, Delhi Gate, Rajghat, Ajmeri Gate and Turkman Gate. Commuters are advised to avoid Minto Road and Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, along with Jawaharlal Nehru Marg and Desh Bandhu Gupta Road, and to take the Metro. Ambulance routes to LNJP and GB Pant hospitals will stay open.
The BJP is answering with a march in Hari Nagar, West Delhi, at 11 am, led by Union Minister Hardeep Singh Puri and Delhi BJP president Harsh Malhotra, with families of victims of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots. The party says the Congress should apologise for 1984 before rallying on its anniversary.