FIR registered against Rahul, Priyanka Gandhi over entry into Akashvani Bhawan without permission during opposition protest
PTC News Desk: The Delhi Police have registered an FIR against Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, along with several other opposition leaders and supporters, for allegedly entering the Akashvani Bhavan premises without permission during a protest against the Election Commission on Wednesday.
According to the police, the FIR was registered after the protesters allegedly entered the premises and refused to leave despite repeated requests to do so.
The protesters had marched from Parliament House towards Nirvachan Sadan, the headquarters of the Election Commission, as part of a protest by INDIA bloc MPs. The march began around 10.30 am.
Police said the protesters crossed the first barricade and moved towards a second barricade near NITI Aayog. Officials repeatedly announced that restrictions under Section 163 of the BNSS were in place and asked the protesters to disperse peacefully.
When the protesters allegedly refused to comply, around 260 people, including 10 MPs, were detained and taken to different police stations for legal action.
Most of the protesters later left the area. However, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, KC Venugopal, Pawan Khera, Manish Chhathrath and around 50-60 supporters allegedly entered the Akashvani Bhavan premises without permission and continued their protest.
Police said the protesters were asked several times to leave but refused. Rahul Gandhi and other opposition leaders reportedly sat under a banyan tree and said they would leave only after a delegation of MPs was given an appointment to meet Election Commission officials.
The police said action was taken after the protesters repeatedly ignored lawful directions and to maintain law and order.
The incident came a day after more than 300 Opposition MPs had marched from Parliament towards Nirvachan Sadan, demanding the resignation of the Election Commission chief. Police stopped the march outside the ECI headquarters and detained more than 250 protesters.
Following the standoff, Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and around 20 other Opposition leaders moved into the Akashvani Bhavan campus, located next to Nirvachan Sadan, and continued their protest until around 8 pm.
The leaders were later detained amid a heavy police presence. Congress alleged that Rahul Gandhi, KC Venugopal and others were manhandled and dragged into buses.
The FIR was registered following a complaint over the alleged unauthorised entry into the Akashvani Bhavan premises. Details of the sections invoked and the complete list of people named in the complaint were not immediately available.
A police officer also said that some Congress workers later reached the New Police Lines area and allegedly tried to scale the walls of the premises.
The protest was part of the Opposition's campaign demanding the resignation of the Election Commission chief over allegations of electoral manipulation. The BJP rejected the allegations and criticised the protest.
- PTC NEWS
