Rahul Gandhi, other Congress leaders released by police after detention

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and other party leaders, who were detained after their over eight-hour sit-in inside Akashvani Bhawan premises, were released by police a little after 10 p.m., the party said.

The Delhi Police on Tuesday (October 6, 2026) detained around 260 people, including 10 Members of Parliament, during a protest march by the INDIA bloc from Parliament House towards the Election Commission of India (ECI) office, saying the protesters had breached police barricades and defied repeated directions to disperse.

Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi, K.C. Venugopal and Pawan Khera were among those later detained after they entered the Akashvani Bhawan premises without permission and staged a sit-in, according to the police. Mr. Gandhi refused to leave the premises, insisting that a delegation of MPs be allowed to meet the ECI.

The police said the protesters were detained after repeated announcements about prohibitory orders under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) and appeals to disperse peacefully went unheeded.

According to the police, the INDIA bloc march began at around 10.30 a.m. on Tuesday (October 6, 2026). The protesters breached the first police barricade and proceeded towards a second barricade near NITI Aayog.

The police said it had made security arrangements in anticipation of the gathering as no application seeking permission for the march had been submitted to the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Police, New Delhi district. Consequently, no permission had been granted for the proposed march, the police said.

The gathering also took place amid prohibitory orders imposed under Section 163 BNSS in the New Delhi area. The police said the arrangements were put in place to regulate the movement of the crowd, maintain law and order and prevent any untoward incident.

After the protesters breached the first barricade, police personnel repeatedly announced the restrictions in force and asked the protesters to disperse. The protesters, however, continued to remain at the spot, the police said.

“Due to the persistent disregard for lawful directives, and with the aim of controlling the situation and maintaining law and order, the police detained the protesters in accordance with the law,” the police said.

Around 260 people, including 10 MPs, were detained and taken to various police stations in Delhi, where necessary legal proceedings were initiated, according to the police.

Most of the protesters subsequently left the area. However, Mr. Gandhi, Ms. Priyanka Gandhi, Mr. Venugopal, Mr. Khera, Mr. Manish Chatrath and around 50–60 supporters entered the Akashvani Bhawan premises without permission and staged a sit-in, the police said.

Mr. Gandhi refused to leave the premises, saying that he would not depart until the delegation of MPs was given an appointment with the ECI.

The police subsequently removed Mr. Gandhi, Ms. Priyanka Gandhi and other protesters from the premises and detained them, saying the action was necessary to prevent the situation from escalating.

The Delhi Police said adequate security and law-and-order arrangements had been made in the area and that the situation was being continuously monitored.

The INDIA bloc has been protesting against the functioning of the Election Commission and has raised concerns over the electoral roll revision exercise. Tuesday’s march was aimed at taking the protest to the ECI office.