Preserve evidence of protest; those responsible will be punished: Rahul Gandhi to students over police 'assault'

Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday urged students who participated in a protest demanding the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar to record videos and preserve evidence of alleged police excesses promising that those found responsible would face actionGandhi made the remarks at a press conference alongside protesters who took part in the demonstration He alleged that the authorities were attempting to suppress a collective voice of dissent and called on students to document their experiences and share evidence with the CongressRahul Gandhi calls protest a collective voiceAddressing the press conference Gandhi said the demonstration brought together people irrespective of religion caste or genderldquoAs I said in my press conference this is India Amit Shah ji take a good look at this There is no Hindu here no Muslim no one from any particular caste There is no woman or man There is one voice one protest It is the voice of India and you are standing against this voice The Prime Minister is standing against this voicerdquo he saidLIVE Media Bite 10 Janpath New Delhi httpstcoOScZ2qfe1mmdash Rahul Gandhi RahulGandhi October 14 2026ldquoI suggest that you do not stand against this voice No one can stand against this voice I have told all the students to keep a video record and send that evidence to us When this entire matter concludes we will use all the evidence and ensure that everyone who needs to be punished is punished from Prime Minister Narendra Modi Gyanesh Kumar and Amit Shah to even the constable who raises a hand against our childrenrdquo Gandhi addedHe said the filing of police cases was part of the protest process but alleged that the demonstratorsrsquo voice was being suppressedldquoSee this is a protest FIRs will be filed and that is all part of the work But there is one voice and that voice is being suppressedrdquo he saidGandhi praises woman protesterGandhi also introduced a female protester as our sherni praising her for remaining fearless despite allegedly being assaultedldquoI want to introduce our lsquoshernirsquo She was beaten but she was not afraid There was no hatred in her heartrdquo he saidThe Congress leader referred to alleged injuries suffered by protesters during the police action and said the incidents warranted scrutinyStudent alleges hearing loss after assaultDelhi Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi holds a press conference along with protesters who participated in the demonstration demanding the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar A protester says I joined the protest on the 4th and on the morning of the 5th we were detained Dharmendra and I were pushed into the Parliament Street police station where 15 to 20 police personnel beat us One or two of them were also in plain clothes One of them was named Bahab Singh Tomar They beat us very badly Then they took us through the back gate An officer Constable Ankit Kasana kept beating both of us throughout the journey from Parliament Street to the outskirts of Delhi When Dharmendra said he was feeling like vomiting the officer told him to open his bag and vomit into it The police personnel told us lsquoBecause of you we are unable to sleepmdash IANS ians_india October 14 2026Gandhi said Athira a student from Kerala studying at Delhi University had lost hearing in one ear after allegedly being struck there during the incidentldquoAthira from Kerala has lost her hearing in one ear She is deaf in one ear because she was struck on that ear She can no longer hear Last time I showed you a boy who had been blinded Now she is deaf in one earrdquo he saidAthira alleged that female police personnel were not present when protesters were detained on Tuesday She said she had questioned the authorities about the absence of a woman police officer or constable arguing that one should be present during the detention of womenShe further alleged that the bus carrying the detainees stopped outside the Connaught Place police station where she was repeatedly struck on the cheekldquoBecause of this I have an injury to my eye and damage to my earrdquo she saidProtest centred on demand for CECrsquos removalThe demonstration was held to demand the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar The allegations of assault and injuries were raised by Gandhi and the protesters during Wednesdayrsquos press conferenceWith inputs from IANS