FIR against Rahul, Priyanka Gandhi over alleged forcible entry into Akashvani Bhawan
Delhi Police has registered an FIR against Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and their supporters for allegedly forcibly entering the Akashvani Bhawan premises during an Opposition protest against the Election Commission on October 6, officials said on Wednesday.
The case was registered at Parliament Street Police Station following a complaint against the Gandhi siblings, their supporters and other MPs who accompanied them, police officials said. They did not disclose the sections invoked in the FIR.
According to police, the Congress leaders and their supporters entered the Akashvani Bhawan premises without permission during an eight-hour sit-in after an INDIA bloc march towards the Election Commission was stopped.
Two guards at Akashvani Bhawan allegedly suffered injuries when the Congress MPs and their supporters tried to enter the premises, officials said. Their medico-legal examinations were conducted, they added.
Police have also taken photographs of the premises after some walls were reportedly damaged during the protest.
Asked about the FIR, Gandhi said he already had 45 such cases against him and described them as a badge of honour.
"I have 45 FIRs against me. My target is that there should be 100 FIRs against me. Every FIR against me is a medal for me," he said.
The Congress criticised the BJP-led government, alleging that the FIR was an attempt to target Gandhi while he was protesting against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
The Gandhi siblings were among 260 people detained after the sit-in that followed the Opposition march.
The INDIA bloc parties were protesting against alleged irregularities in the functioning of the Election Commission under Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and the SIR exercise, raising the issue of alleged "vote chori".
Delhi Police said the INDIA bloc parties had planned to march from Parliament House to the Election Commission office on Tuesday but had not sought permission from the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Police, New Delhi.
No permission had been granted for the march, police said.
The protest and subsequent sit-in were part of the Opposition's continuing campaign against the SIR exercise and its demand for accountability from the Election Commission.
