Rahul Gandhi leads I.N.D.I.A. bloc MPs' protest march to EC over 'vote chori'
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Indian Express
23 minutes ago
- Indian Express
‘Fight to protect democracy': Opposition leaders react to detention during ‘vote chori' protest
Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi said the Opposition is protesting for the right to vote for every Indian, and demanded a 'clean and pure' voter list, as top opposition leaders were stopped on Monday from marching to the Election Commission (EC) office against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise in Bihar. The Delhi Police said it had detained Opposition MPs including Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut and TMC's Sagarika Ghose, during the protest. No one had sought permission for the protest march to the Election Commission, police said. Gandhi said the Election Commission is silent as the truth is before the entire nation, after his charge that over one lakh votes in an assembly constituency in Karnataka were found to be fake in a research conducted by his party. 'They (EC) cannot talk as the truth is before the entire nation,' he said as he was being taken away in a bus by the police. 'This fight is not political—it is a fight to protect democracy, the Constitution, and the right to 'one person, one vote',' he said. आज जब हम चुनाव आयोग से मिलने जा रहे थे, INDIA गठबंधन के सभी सांसदों को रोका गया और हिरासत में ले लिया गया। वोट चोरी की सच्चाई अब देश के सामने है। यह लड़ाई राजनीतिक नहीं – यह लोकतंत्र, संविधान और 'एक व्यक्ति, एक वोट' के अधिकार की रक्षा की लड़ाई है। एकजुट विपक्ष और देश का हर… — Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) August 11, 2025 Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge said the protest against 'vote chori' and SIR is a fight to protect people's right to vote and a struggle to save democracy. In a post on X, he said, 'BJP's cowardly dictatorship will not work. This is a fight to protect people's right to vote. This is a struggle to save democracy. The allies of the INDIA coalition will surely expose this BJP conspiracy to shred the Constitution.' भाजपा की कायराना तानाशाही नहीं चलेगी ! ये जनता के वोट के अधिकार को बचाने की लड़ाई है। ये लोकतंत्र को बचाने का संघर्ष है। INDIA गठबंधन के साथी संविधान की धज्जियां उड़ाने वाली इस भाजपाई साज़िश को बेनक़ाब करके ही रहेंगे। #VoteChori — Mallikarjun Kharge (@kharge) August 11, 2025 Democracy was being 'assaulted and murdered right outside Parliament,' alleged Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh. He told PTI that Opposition MPs wanted to take out a peaceful march to the EC office as a mark of protest against the ongoing SIR of electoral rolls, but were stopped by the police. 'We had already written to the EC that all MPs collectively wanted to hand over a memorandum to the EC,' he said. 'Chunav Aayog is Chunav Aayog, it cannot be churao aayog,' Ramesh told PTI. Here is our original request to the ECI. It is for the Opposition MPs to collectively hand over a memoradum and NOT for just a delegation — Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) August 11, 2025 Congress MP KC Venugopal on Monday posted on X saying, 'This is nothing but a desperate attempt to silence the Opposition on this burning issue of saving democracy from mass rigging. Such intimidation will not work for us, and we will continue to fight for the people's inalienable right to vote.' We were holding a peaceful march to the ECI office, but the police has detained all of us, including INC President Sh. Mallikarjun @kharge ji, LOP Sh. @RahulGandhi ji and hundreds of INDIA bloc leaders. This is nothing but a desperate attempt to silence the opposition on this… — K C Venugopal (@kcvenugopalmp) August 11, 2025 Wearing white caps with a red cross on the words 'SIR' and 'vote chori', the protesting MPs started their march from Parliament's Makar Dwar raising slogans against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise in Bihar and 'vote chori' while carrying placards and banners.
India.com
25 minutes ago
- India.com
'Will not give in to nuclear blackmail': India responds to Pak Army Chief Munir's anti-India statements in US
Asim Munir- File image New Delhi: The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Monday issued a strong statement in response to remarks reportedly made by the Pakistani Chief of Army Staff during his visit to the United States. 'Our attention has been drawn to remarks reportedly made by the Pakistani Chief of Army Staff while on a visit to the United States. Nuclear sabre-rattling is Pakistan's stock-in-trade,' the MEA official spokesperson said. The spokesperson added, 'The international community can draw its own conclusions on the irresponsibility inherent in such remarks, which also reinforce the well-held doubts about the integrity of nuclear command and control in a state where the military is hand-in-glove with terrorist groups.' The MEA spokesperson further expressed regret that these remarks were made from the soil of a friendly third country. 'It is also regrettable that these remarks should have been made from the soil of a friendly third country,' the official said. 'India has already made it clear that it will not give in to nuclear blackmail and will continue to take all necessary steps to safeguard its national security, the MEA spokesperson affirmed.' the MEA statement further said. Despite this firm stance, Pakistan Army Chief Asim Munir has once again threatened India, warning that Islamabad would plunge the region into nuclear war and could take 'almost half of the world' down if faced with an existential threat in a future conflict with New Delhi. During his ongoing visit to the United States, General Munir also stated that Islamabad will defend its water rights 'at all costs' if India proceeds with dam construction on the Indus River. Munir also repeated his anti-India rhetoric by describing Kashmir as Pakistan's 'jugular vein,' asserting that it is not India's internal matter but an unresolved international issue, Pakistan-based media outlet ARY News reported on Monday. 'We will wait for India to build a dam, and when they do so, we will destroy it,' Munir told members of the Pakistani-American community in Tampa, Florida, according to a report published today in The Dawn. At a black-tie dinner in Washington, DC, hosted by Adnan Asad, Pakistan's honorary consul in Tampa, Munir said the Indus River 'is not the Indians' family property,' adding that Islamabad has 'no shortage of resources to undo the Indian designs to stop the river,' the Dawn reported. ARY News cited Munir as condemning 'Indian aggression under Operation Sindoor,' calling it a grave violation of Pakistan's sovereignty. He also stated, 'A bilateral conflict due to any mistake by India would be a huge blunder.' Munir credited Pakistan's response with successfully preventing a wider conflict and thanked US President Donald Trump for his role in defusing tensions between the two countries. Ahead of the Pahalgam attack, India had strongly rebutted Pakistan Army Chief General Munir's remarks describing Kashmir as Pakistan's 'jugular vein,' calling the claim baseless and asserting that the only relationship Pakistan has with Kashmir is to vacate the territory it occupies illegally. Meanwhile, Munir recently visited two US cities over the weekend and flew to Brussels on Sunday after completing his second high-profile trip to the United States in less than two months. Like his previous visit, he engaged with political and military leadership in the host country, Dawn reported. In Tampa, the Pakistan army chief attended the US Central Command (CENTCOM) change of command ceremony. According to the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), his engagements included the retirement ceremony of General Michael E. Kurilla, Commander of CENTCOM, and the change of command where Admiral Brad Cooper assumed charge. Dawn quoted ISPR as saying that Field Marshal Munir praised General Kurilla's 'exemplary leadership and invaluable contributions in strengthening Pakistan-US military relations' and expressed confidence that Admiral Cooper 'would take this partnership forward to address shared security challenges.' On the sidelines of the ceremony, Asim Munir met US Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Dan Caine and chiefs of defence from other friendly countries. He invited General Caine to visit Pakistan and reaffirmed Islamabad's role as a key regional security stakeholder, Dawn reported
Hindustan Times
25 minutes ago
- Hindustan Times
3,685 centrally protected monuments, sites under jurisdiction of ASI: Govt tells Lok Sabha
New Delhi, There are 3,685 centrally protected monuments and sites under the jurisdiction of Archaeological Survey of India in the country including minority heritage sites, places of worship and pilgrimage sites, the government informed Parliament on Monday. 3,685 centrally protected monuments, sites under jurisdiction of ASI: Govt tells Lok Sabha Union Culture Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat said this in a written response to a query in the Lok Sabha. The ASI, which falls under the purview of the ministry, is responsible for the upkeep of monuments and sites which are centrally protected. In his written response to a query in Lok Sabha in March, the Union minister had said that there are "3698 monuments and archaeological sites and remains declared as of national importance in the country". Officials in the ministry and the Delhi-headquartered ASI have said that the list of sites under the ASI is "updated" from time to time. Ancient monuments and archaeological sites and remains which are under the ASI are declared as of national importance by and under the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958. A memorial to British officer John Nicholson in Delhi, two Kos Minars in Haryana, and a tablet on the old Treasury Building in Varanasi are among the 18 monuments recently delisted from the list of protected sites as they had "ceased" to be of national importance, the government had informed Lok Sabha on July 21. On Monday, the minister was asked the number and details of minority heritage sites, places of worship, and pilgrimage sites identified for preservation, restoration or development under any government schemes during the last ten years. "There are 3,685 centrally protected monuments/sites under the jurisdiction of Archaeological Survey of India in the country including minority heritage sites, places of worship and pilgrimage sites. Conservation and preservation of these monuments/sites is a regular process and is taken up as per the requirement and availability of resources subject to the guidelines of National Policy for Conservation, 2014," Shekhawat said. In his response, he also shared details of the funds allocated and expenditure incurred on the conservation, preservation and development of these monuments and sites. He was asked whether the government proposes to introduce a dedicated scheme for the "preservation, restoration and promotion of minority heritage sites, places of worship and pilgrimage destinations" and if so, the details and the timeline thereof. ASI undertakes preservation, restoration and promotion of centrally protected monuments from funds allocated by the government of India, the minister said. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.
