Detained in Buses, Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi Pull Off Off-Script Move at Akashvani Bhavan to Keep INDIA Bloc Protest Alive
2 min readNew DelhiOct 6, 2026 01:59 PM IST
First published on: Oct 6, 2026 at 01:59 PM IST
The INDIA bloc protest against the Election Commission took a surprise turn on Tuesday, thanks to Rahul Gandhi, the Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, and his sister and Wayanad MP, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.
The Opposition MPs were detained and pushed into buses to different police stations in Delhi. The protest was all but over when the siblings pulled off an impromptu move that even left Congress leaders confused.
Priyanka was already seated in one of the buses, parked outside the Akashvani Bhavan, the headquarters of All India Radio, and Rahul was about to get in. Suddenly, the siblings walked past the cops and into the Akashvani Bhavan premises. The move was off the script and the police personnel initially did not know how to react.
Once the Gandhis went inside, Congress leaders KC Venugopal and Pawan Khera climbed the boundary wall of Akashvani Bhawan and started raising slogans. Imran Pratapgarhi and Srinivas BV joined them.
Most Congress leaders had thought the protest was over. “We don’t know what happened. This was not part of the plan.
Only the two of them know what they had in mind when they walked in,” said a Congress MP outside Akashvani Bhawan.
At this point, the Congress leaders are still camping on the premises as top security officers talk to them.
Personnel from Delhi Police and Rapid Action Force are now stationed outside the Akashvani Bhavan. A police officer said the force inside the premises was to ensure the leaders’ safety.
Congress leaders have credited the Gandhis with derailing the police plan to end the protest. “The protest would have been over if they didn’t do this.”
