"Why is Rahul Gandhi keen to create chaos and anarchy?": Rajeev Chandrasekhar hits out at INDIA bloc protest against CEC

Speaking to reporters, Chandrasekhar said disputes concerning the Chief Election Commissioner should be resolved through established legal and judicial mechanisms and not through street protests.

Keralam BJP President Rajeev Chandrasekhar on Tuesday hit out at Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi over the INDIA bloc's protest march to the Election Commission, questioning why the Congress leader was "keen to create chaos and anarchy". Speaking to reporters, Chandrasekhar said disputes concerning the Chief Election Commissioner should be resolved through established legal and judicial mechanisms and not through street protests.

Chandrasekhar's remarks came as INDIA bloc MPs staged a sit-in at Akashvani Bhavan in New Delhi after being stopped by barricades while marching towards Nirvachan Sadan, the headquarters of the Election Commission of India, to raise concerns over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. "There is a standard toolkit now in the Congress party which is blindly followed by parties which have no other options like the CPM, which is to try and create a narrative and use that narrative to bring mobs and crowds onto the Jantar Mantar or wherever into the public," Chandrasekhar said.

Questioning Gandhi's intentions, Chandrasekhar referred to a statement attributed to the Congress leader regarding an Emergency-like situation. "Rahul Gandhi said in June 2026 that there will be an emergency in this country. Why is Rahul Gandhi so keen to create chaos and anarchy in this country? Why is he anticipating an emergency-like situation in this country?" Chandrasekhar said.

He said the dispute concerning the Chief Election Commissioner should be dealt with through established legal mechanisms rather than street protests. "The issue of Gyanendra or CEC is best left to the court system to decide. Mobs cannot take over adjudication of disputes and grievances in a democracy," he said.

Earlier in the day, INDIA bloc MPs marched towards Nirvachan Sadan but were stopped by barricades. Several MPs, including Rahul Gandhi, attempted to cross the barricades while trying to reach the Election Commission's office. Following the intervention by security personnel, the Opposition MPs staged a sit-in at the nearby Akashvani Bhavan, located around 100 metres from the poll panel's headquarters.

Gandhi said the Opposition would continue its protest at the premises and asked Delhi Police to provide an alternative venue if it was uncomfortable with the demonstration. "We don't have any problem with protesting here. We will continue our protests here. If they (Delhi Police) are uncomfortable with us protesting here, they can provide us with another place to protest. The Constitution allows us to lodge a protest," Gandhi told reporters.

He also questioned why the Election Commission was not allowing Opposition MPs to meet the poll panel. "300 opposition MPs were removed from there, so I came here and sat. We just want to meet Gyanesh Kumar and the other election commissioners. We are all opposition MPs from Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, and we just want to talk to them. Don't know why the Election Commission does not want to talk to us. Crores of people have voted for us. We just want to ask questions, but they don't want to answer," Gandhi said.

The Opposition's protest is part of its broader "Save Democracy" campaign against the Election Commission and the SIR exercise. Tensions escalated during the march as Congress workers and INDIA bloc supporters attempted to move towards Nirvachan Sadan, resulting in scuffles with security personnel. Police detained several Youth Congress and NSUI workers after they gathered outside Akashvani Bhavan.

Prohibitory orders under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) were in force in the area following the march. Police sources said there were no immediate plans to remove Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra from Akashvani Bhavan, although officers were urging Gandhi to leave voluntarily, citing disruption to traffic in New Delhi. The political confrontation comes amid continuing Opposition objections to the SIR exercise. An Indian Express report had claimed that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi raised 14 objections during the exercise, while the Election Commission has maintained that its decisions were unanimous.

Opposition leaders have also questioned modifications to Form 6, used for enrolment of new voters. The Supreme Court on Monday said it had not approved any modified version of Form 6 being used for enrolment during the SIR exercise. (ANI)