Shimla: The Himachal Pradesh Congress on Wednesday staged a protest outside the Lok Bhavan here against the detention of senior party functionaries Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and other opposition representatives during the demonstration against the Election Commission in Delhi.Himachal Pradesh chief minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu, state Congress president Vinay Kumar, ministers, MLAs and a large number of party workers participated in the protest and raised slogans against the Centre.Sukhu criticised the detention of opposition leaders, saying it raised questions about the space for dissent in a democracy. He said Rahul Gandhi was detained while marching with around 300 MPs to raise issues concerning the electoral process.“Why does the son and grandson of former Prime Ministers have to take to the streets to raise their voice?” Sukhu asked, describing Rahul as a leader fighting for democratic rights.Referring to Rahul Gandhi’s allegations of “vote chori”, Sukhu said the Congress was seeking answers on issues related to the electoral process and voter lists.He announced that the Congress would hold protests across Himachal Pradesh on Thursday against Rahul’s detention. We will continue raising issues concerning democracy and electoral rights, Sukhu added.
