Congress party protests nationwide against CEC Gyanesh Kumar

The Indian National Congress launched widespread protests across India on Friday, demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar. Demonstrations took place in major cities including Delhi, Patna, Chandigarh, Kolkata, Lucknow, Hyderabad, Shimla, and Dehradun.

In Assam, party leaders including Assam Congress President Gaurav Gogoi, Secretary Manoj Chauhan, Seva Dal President Deep Bayan, and Udit Bhanu Das were detained by police while attempting to march toward the Chief Electoral Officer’s office to burn an effigy of Kumar. Gogoi described the protest as a ‘democratic step’ to express concern over attacks on Indian democracy.

In other regions, police used water cannons in Patna to disperse workers and fired tear gas in Manipur to clear protesters near the election office. In Chandigarh, Punjab Congress President Amrinder Singh Raja Warring was among those detained, while in Jammu, MP Syed Nasir Hussain was also taken into custody. Congress leaders have accused the authorities of using force to suppress democratic expression.