A political showdown unfolded in Delhi on Monday (August 11) as over 30 opposition MPs, including Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, were detained by Delhi Police during a protest march to the Election Commission’s office. They were released around two hours later.

Police sources confirmed that Rahul, Priyanka, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut, and TMC MP Sagarika Ghose were among those taken into custody and escorted to the Parliament Street police station.

According to the police, the Election Commission had allowed only 30 MPs to enter its office, but the number of protesters far exceeded that limit. Authorities also claimed the march had no formal permission.

Following their release, the INDIA bloc leaders headed straight to attend the Parliament session.

Earlier in the day, during a protest against alleged bias by the Election Commission, Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi, along with several other MPs, were detained near the Parliament building. The demonstration was linked to demands for a Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of Bihar’s voter list and allegations of electoral fraud.

The protest march, led by Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, started from Parliament’s Makar Dwar towards the Election Commission headquarters. However, they didn’t get far—police had set up barricades blocking the route.

In the chaos, MPs like TMC’s Mahua Moitra and Samajwadi Party’s Akhilesh Yadav were seen trying to climb over the barricades. Meanwhile, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and several other leaders sat down on the road in a sit-in protest. The police eventually detained the group and took them to the station.