The Rajasthan Congress Protest Jaipur on September 28, 2026, saw former Rajasthan chief minister Ashok Gehlot, state Congress president Govind Singh Dotasra and several other senior party leaders detained by police during a march over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. The Congress had organised the demonstration over what it described as irregularities in the voter-list revision process and demanded action against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
The Rajasthan Congress Protest Jaipur began at Shaheed Smarak, where a large number of Congress workers and party leaders assembled with flags and posters. The protesters raised slogans and demanded the resignation and arrest of CEC Gyanesh Kumar before starting a march towards the State Election Commission office. Heavy police deployment was made around the protest site and traffic movement on MI Road was diverted.
As the Rajasthan Congress Protest Jaipur march moved forward, police personnel stopped the protesters using multiple layers of barricades. When some protesters attempted to cross the barricades, a scuffle broke out between police and workers. Police subsequently used water cannons to disperse the marchers and prevent them from moving towards the State Election Commission office.
Ashok Gehlot, Govind Singh Dotasra and Rajasthan Congress in-charge Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa were among the senior leaders detained during the Rajasthan Congress Protest Jaipur, according to party sources. Leader of Opposition in the Rajasthan Assembly Tikaram Jully and former minister Pratap Singh Khachariyawas were also present during the demonstration. The detained leaders were taken to Vidyadhar Nagar police station.
Reports said a large number of Congress workers also courted arrest during the Rajasthan Congress Protest Jaipur. National Herald reported that more than 100 Congress leaders and workers were reportedly detained and later released. Other reports also confirmed the detention of several senior leaders, although the exact number of people detained varied between reports.
The main issue behind the Rajasthan Congress Protest Jaipur was the ongoing controversy surrounding the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. Congress has alleged that the SIR process could affect the voting rights of genuine voters and has raised questions about the functioning and decision-making of the Election Commission. These are political allegations made by the Congress and have not been established as findings against the Election Commission.
Govind Singh Dotasra strongly criticised the Election Commission and CEC Gyanesh Kumar while addressing Congress workers before the Rajasthan Congress Protest Jaipur march. According to reports, Dotasra accused Kumar of irregularities in the SIR process and said the protest would be expanded across Rajasthan. His remarks represented the Congress party’s position on the electoral-roll controversy.
Ashok Gehlot also addressed the gathering during the Rajasthan Congress Protest Jaipur and alleged that democratic institutions were being weakened. He called on Congress workers to remain active and engage with people across the state over the issue. His statements were part of the Congress campaign against what the party describes as concerns surrounding the electoral process.
The former Rajasthan chief minister also linked his remarks to the state’s recently held urban local body elections. Gehlot alleged that the Congress suffered because of what he described as arbitrary and incorrect ward delimitation and alleged misuse of police and administration. These claims were made by Gehlot during the protest and were not independently established in the reports.
The Rajasthan Congress Protest Jaipur was part of a wider Congress campaign against the Election Commission over the SIR issue. Congress units in several parts of the country held demonstrations on September 28, with protesters demanding greater accountability from CEC Gyanesh Kumar. In New Delhi, Indian Youth Congress and NSUI members also demonstrated near the Election Commission headquarters, with several protesters detained.
The controversy has also followed reports about differences within the Election Commission concerning aspects of the electoral-roll revision process. The Indian Express had reported that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi separately wrote to Cabinet Secretary TV Somanathan after a work allocation order within the Election Commission. According to the report, they raised concerns that the order could concentrate certain powers relating to electoral-roll additions, deletions and record updates at the central level.
The reported internal concerns have become an important part of the political debate surrounding the Rajasthan Congress Protest Jaipur. Congress has cited reports about disagreements among election commissioners while demanding greater transparency from the poll panel. The Election Commission, however, has maintained that decisions relating to the SIR process were taken unanimously by the commission. Therefore, reported differences over specific administrative or procedural matters need to be distinguished from the final decisions formally taken by the three-member commission.
The protest also had a visible impact on movement around central Jaipur. Heavy police deployment was put in place at Shaheed Smarak and traffic on MI Road was diverted as authorities prepared for the march. The presence of multiple barricades indicated that police had restricted movement towards the State Election Commission office.
During the Rajasthan Congress Protest Jaipur, Congress workers continued raising slogans after their leaders were detained. Reports said Gehlot, Dotasra and other senior leaders continued their protest at the police station after being taken into custody. They raised slogans against CEC Gyanesh Kumar and Rajasthan Chief Minister Bhajan Lal Sharma.
According to Amar Ujala’s report, Congress leaders and workers who were taken to Vidyadhar Nagar police station staged a sit-in there following their detention. The report said Gehlot, Dotasra, Tikaram Jully and Sukhjinder Singh Randhawa were among those at the police station, where party workers continued raising slogans related to the “vote theft” issue.
The Rajasthan Congress Protest Jaipur also involved Leader of Opposition Tikaram Jully, who participated in the march and raised slogans along with other Congress workers. Party members lifted Jully and former minister Pratap Singh Khachariyawas onto their shoulders during the demonstration as protesters attempted to move forward.
The Congress has described the protest as part of a broader movement concerning electoral rights and the functioning of democratic institutions. Party leaders have demanded action against CEC Gyanesh Kumar and have argued that questions surrounding the SIR process require answers. These statements reflect the Congress position and should be distinguished from the Election Commission’s own position on the process.
For the Election Commission, the SIR exercise concerns the revision and verification of electoral rolls. Such exercises involve checking voter information and updating electoral records according to the applicable procedures. The current political dispute is centred on how the process is being implemented and whether the safeguards are sufficient, rather than simply on the existence of electoral-roll revision itself.
The Rajasthan Congress Protest Jaipur comes shortly after similar demonstrations were held in other parts of the country. In Delhi, Indian Youth Congress members attempted to march towards the Election Commission headquarters and several were detained after being stopped by barricades. The protests show that the SIR controversy has expanded from a debate over electoral-roll procedures into a broader political campaign by the Congress.
At the same time, reports of the Jaipur protest should be separated from claims about the ultimate validity of the electoral-roll process. The Congress has raised allegations concerning irregularities and voter rights, while the Election Commission remains responsible for administering the revision process. Whether individual claims regarding voter deletions, additions or procedural violations are substantiated would require examination of the relevant electoral records and official responses.
The Rajasthan Congress Protest Jaipur also comes against the backdrop of a wider national dispute involving CEC Gyanesh Kumar. Congress leaders have repeatedly demanded his resignation or removal, while the Election Commission has continued its work on electoral-roll revision. The political disagreement has intensified following reports concerning internal discussions among election commissioners and the subsequent public responses from political parties.
The use of water cannons during the Jaipur march became one of the most prominent developments of the Rajasthan Congress Protest Jaipur. Police used the water cannons after protesters attempted to move beyond the barricades, according to multiple reports. The action was followed by the detention of several senior Congress leaders and workers.
The detention of Gehlot and Dotasra gave the Rajasthan Congress Protest Jaipur additional political significance because both leaders hold prominent positions within the state Congress organisation and the former chief minister remains an influential senior party figure in Rajasthan. Their detention occurred alongside that of Randhawa and other senior leaders participating in the march.
The Congress has indicated that the Jaipur demonstration will not be treated as an isolated protest. Dotasra said the September 28 action was only the beginning and that Congress workers would take the issue to people across Rajasthan. The party’s stated objective is to raise awareness about its concerns over SIR and electoral rights.
The Rajasthan Congress Protest Jaipur therefore represents another stage in the continuing political dispute over the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. The demonstration involved senior Congress leaders, a large gathering of party workers, police barricading, the use of water cannons and the detention of several leaders. The Congress has continued to demand accountability from the Election Commission, while the poll panel has maintained its position regarding the electoral-roll revision process.
As the SIR-related debate continues, further developments are expected to focus on the Election Commission’s responses, political parties’ objections and the implementation of electoral-roll revision procedures. For Rajasthan, the September 28 protest has brought the national SIR controversy directly into the state’s political arena, with the Congress signalling that it intends to continue raising the issue across the state.
