Buses, slogans, MPs: Opposition’s armoury for day two of clash against the BJP
This was the second day of protests after Rahul Gandhi and Opposition MPs staged a sit-in outside the ECI office that lasted more than six hours on Oct 6
This was the second day of protests after Rahul Gandhi and Opposition MPs staged a sit-in outside the ECI office that lasted more than six hours on Oct 6.
This was the second day of protests after Rahul Gandhi and Opposition MPs staged a sit-in outside the ECI office that lasted more than six hours on Oct 6.
This was the second day of protests after Rahul Gandhi and Opposition MPs staged a sit-in outside the ECI office that lasted more than six hours on Oct 6.
Trinamool Congress parliamentarian Derek O’Brien wore a black T-shirt with “EC—Ekdum Chor (complete thief)" written on it as he sat in the front seat of a bus carrying Opposition MPs to the Jantar Mantar in Delhi.
The parliamentarians took to the streets in buses to protest against the BJP and the Election Commission of India (ECI), which they allege has manipulated elections.
Several leaders, besides parliamentarians, also joined the sloganeering against “vote theft”. The march started from Ratna Sagar, a restaurant where the MPs had lunch, before they moved out in buses.
"This is the fight for unity of the country and removing the dividers of nation," Rishikesh, a Congress leader in the rally said.
This was the second day of protests after Rahul Gandhi and Opposition MPs staged a sit-in outside the ECI office that lasted more than six hours on October 6.
Wednesday’s protest was a continuation of that action, with the Opposition claiming that it had not been given space to conduct a peaceful protest.
For now, the Opposition’s protest has become a two-track movement, with the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) mobilising youth around a specific agenda on one side, while political parties are taking on the BJP and the Election Commission at multiple levels—in Parliament, on the streets, and through political mobilisation.
Congress leaders have said this is just the beginning and that more protests will follow, hinting that the Opposition plans to spend more time on the streets than before to seek accountability from the ECI and the BJP.
According to party insiders, there is a sense of rejuvenation within the Opposition. They believe that some of the issues they had been raising are now finding greater resonance after recent investigative media reports alleged irregularities in the functioning of the ECI, lending greater legitimacy to the concerns raised by the Congress.
A Congress leader said:
“Many people, and even people within the Congress, had doubts about whether there was vote chori. There wasn't complete faith in vote theft. Now everybody knows, and therefore there is more momentum around the issue. The more immediate actionable thing for the Opposition is to rally people who believe our country's Constitution is being violated."