'Don't worry about lathis': Rahul urges public to join 'Chalo Dilli' march

• Rahul Gandhi urges students and the public to join the INDIA bloc’s 1 November march in Delhi.

• Opposition leaders allege electoral fraud and demand chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation.

• INDIA bloc plans ‘public impeachment’ proceeding against the CEC ahead of Ramlila Maidan rally.

Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Thursday, 29 October urged people to join the Opposition INDIA bloc’s 1 November ‘Chalo Delhii’ march, asking them not to fear the "police or their lathis".

Gandhi asserted that the BJP "will not have the guts to try any of their antics", as he called on student groups, irrespective of their political affiliations, to participate in the march at Ramlila Maidan in Delhi.

The Congress leader said the march was aimed at saving democracy, ending "vote chori (theft)" and protecting the Constitution.

In a video posted on X, Gandhi described the protest as a singular movement for the nation. "The 'Chalo Delhi' Ramlila March is a march to save democracy, to put an end to the theft of votes, and to protect the Constitution," he said. "This is not a march for any single political party; it is a march for the very soul of India."

"To all those who are fed up with Narendra Modi, Amit Shah and Gyanesh Kumar, and everyone who wishes to save democracy and defend the Constitution, I invite you all to join," Gandhi said. "Don't worry about the police, don't worry about lathis — the BJP will not have the guts to try any of their antics. Come march with us — we will walk together to protect the Constitution, to protect the Indian nation."

Gandhi urged student groups across political affiliations to join the march if they believed that India, and their own freedom of expression, ideas and way of thinking, were under attack.

"It will be a fantastic march, and it's a march for the soul of this country," he said. "Looking forward to seeing all of you there."

Congress general-secretary (organisation) K.C. Venugopal also accused the government of attacking democracy, pointing out that 13 crore names had been deleted from electoral rolls and that a "massive fraud" was taking place across states.

"Our votes are being stolen and when we demand answers, we are met with lathicharge and detention but we will not be silenced, we will not be intimidated, we will continue to fight for our democracy," Venugopal said in a video statement on X.

He said Gandhi was leading the fight against electoral irregularities and called on people to join the INDIA bloc’s march.

"Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi is leading this fight from the front, fearlessly raising questions and holding those in power accountable. Now it is time for all of us to stand with him and join this fight. On 1 November, there will be a massive rally and march by INDIA parties at Ramlila Maidan, Delhi, demanding Gyanesh Kumar's resignation and holding the Modi government accountable," he said.

Venugopal urged people to join the march, saying the future of democracy was at stake and "we cannot afford to remain silent".

The INDIA bloc will also hold a "public impeachment" proceeding against chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on Friday, 30 October at Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge’s residence at 10, Rajaji Marg, over alleged irregularities in the special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. Former Lok Sabha speaker Meira Kumar will chair the proceedings.

Tagging Gandhi’s post, Congress Rajya Sabha MP Pawan Khera said the BJP’s attempts to sabotage the march — whether by refusing to provide trains in Telangana or using Delhi’s traders as a political tool — would not succeed. The march would go ahead, he said.

"This is not the protest of one community or one political party. It is a protest of the nation. A protest for the 13.30 crore Indians illegally disenfranchised through the SIR," Khera said.

He described it as a protest for every Indian whose voting rights and welfare benefits were under threat, as well as for those who had allegedly died by suicide or suffered cardiac arrests and other health complications linked to the SIR exercise.

Khera also called it a protest against 'Mohan-Modi-Shah-Gyanesh'. He urged people to join if they believed every Indian had the right to vote and that taking away this right amounted to a grave assault on democracy.

Asking people not to fear the Delhi Police, Khera said the march would be peaceful, like the INDIA bloc’s march to the Supreme Court. "Our resolve, our passion and the sheer joy of this struggle have already intimidated the BJP into steering clear of violence. So, don't worry about the Delhi Police," he said. "This is a caravan for the Constitution. A march for democracy. A movement for every Indian. On 1 November, come, let's march to Ramlila Maidan."

With PTI inputs