Akhilesh to join ‘Delhi Chalo’ rally; Rahul urges students to march

• Akhilesh Yadav says the Samajwadi Party will join the INDIA bloc’s November 1 rally at Ramlila Maidan.

• Rahul Gandhi appeals to students across political affiliations to join the ‘Delhi Chalo’ march.

• INDIA bloc postpones its symbolic ‘public impeachment’ of CEC Gyanesh Kumar to 31 October due to rain.

Samajwadi Party president Akhilesh Yadav on Friday, 30 October said he would participate in the INDIA bloc’s 1 November rally in Delhi against alleged electoral irregularities and demanding the removal of chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

“We will go to Delhi on 1 November. We will also participate in the rally,” Yadav said at a press conference in Lucknow.

The rally, to be led by Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi at Ramlila Maidan, is part of the Opposition bloc’s campaign against alleged 'vote chori (theft)' and irregularities in electoral rolls.

Reiterating his appeal ahead of the mobilisation, Rahul Gandhi urged students across political affiliations to join the march, asking them not to be deterred by the possibility of police action.

In a video message shared on social media, Gandhi described the ‘Chalo Delhi Ramlila March’ as a movement to “save democracy, stop vote theft and protect the Constitution”, saying it was not the protest of any one political party but a march for the “soul of India”.

“Everyone who is fed up with Narendra Modi, Amit Shah and Gyanesh Kumar, everyone who wants to save democracy and protect the Constitution, please come and join us,” he said. Gandhi also told people not to worry about the police or lathis, asserting that the BJP “will not have the guts to try any of their usual antics”.

“Come march with us. We will walk together to protect the Constitution, to protect the Indian nation,” he said.

Urging students to participate regardless of their political affiliations, Gandhi said those who felt their expression, ideas or way of thinking were under attack should join the rally. “It will be a fantastic march, and it’s a march for the soul of this country,” he said.

The INDIA bloc is also planning a symbolic “public impeachment” of Gyanesh Kumar. The programme, originally scheduled for Friday, was postponed to Saturday, 31 October, owing to rain in the national capital.

Announcing the postponement, Gandhi said the Opposition leaders had decided by consensus to defer the programme, as it would be uncomfortable for senior leaders to sit in the rain.

The 'public impeachment' is part of the Opposition’s campaign against the Election Commission of India (ECI) over alleged irregularities in the special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. The bloc has demanded Kumar’s removal, alleging that the exercise has led to the disenfranchisement of eligible voters.

The Opposition has maintained that the two programmes — the symbolic impeachment and the 1 November rally — are part of a united campaign to defend democracy and the Constitution.

With PTI inputs