Thousands rally in New Delhi to demand India’s election chief resign
Hundreds of police, some carrying batons and shields, are deployed around the rally site.
Thousands of protesters have taken to the streets in India’s capital, New Delhi, to demand the resignation of the election chief over changes to voter lists that opposition parties say favour Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling party.
Indian National Congress party leader Rahul Gandhi led Sunday’s demonstration, the latest in more than a month of protests challenging the revision of electoral rolls and the conduct of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
Opposition parties alleged the exercise, which removed more than 130 million names from voter lists, disproportionately affected Muslims and other minorities considered unlikely to support Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Hundreds of police, some carrying batons and shields, were deployed around the rally site alongside riot-control vehicles. Demonstrators waved Indian and party flags as opposition leaders travelled in an open-top jeep.