Two Congress leaders were arrested for vandalizing Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar’s residence in Agra during a protest, where slogans labeling him as a “traitor” and “thief” were spray-painted.
Photo : ANI
Amid nationwide protest by opposition parties against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar amid row over Special Intensive Revision (SIR), two Congress leaders were arrested on Monday for allegedly defacing the wall and the main gate of CEC’s ancestral home in Agra. The Congress leaders are accused of painting graffiti against CEC with words “Gyanesh Gaddar, Gyanesh Chor” (Gyanesh traitor, Gyanesh thief), police said.
Incident During Congress’ Nationwide Protest Amid SIR Row
The incident unfolded during the Congress workers’ protest outside Kumar’s house in Vijay Nagar, where they raised slogans and defaced the main gate and a wall of the house with spray paint, following which police registered an FIR.
Agra Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Bajrang Prasad said a case was registered at the Hari Parvat police station in connection with the incident and Congress leader Mukesh Dhangar and general secretary (organisation) Anil Yadav were arrested.
The protesters, including Congress workers and affiliated organisations, arrived in large numbers in the morning, and also put up stickers and pasted pamphlets outside his residence.
Gyanesh Kumar Gupta’s ‘karma’ is being written on the walls of his ancestral home in Agra.
He must understand that by presiding over an electoral and moral crisis for personal and political gain, he has self-identified as an enemy of our Constitution and democracy.
And there is no place for him except in jail.
— Pawan Khera 🇮🇳 ಪವನ್ ಖೇರಾ (@Pawankhera) September 28, 2026
Protesters Write “Gyanesh Gaddar Gyanesh Chor” At CEC’s Agra Residence
The protesters used spray paint to write “Gyanesh Gaddar Gyanesh Chor” on the main gate and the wall of the house.
Visuals of the protest and the defacement were subsequently shared on social media.
The Indian Youth Congress, in a post on X, said, “In Agra, Congress workers blackened with soot the house of ‘Gaddar Gyanesh’. The way Modi and Shah, in collusion with Gyanesh, have looted elections across different parts of the country over the past several years is directly an act of treason against the country. We will ensure that Gyanesh is punished.” ACP Bajrang
Prasad said police are also searching for other Congress leaders allegedly involved in the protest.
Demonstrations Across Country Against CEC
Similar demonstrations, including burning Kumar’s effigy and taking out protest marches, were held in Varanasi, Lucknow, Prayagraj, Ayodhya, Raebareli, Sultanpur, Sonbhadra, Sitapur, Unnao, Maharajganj and Mathura districts, as part of Congress’ statewide agitation.
At Lucknow’s Tikunia Park, hundreds of Congress workers marched to gherao the Election Commission office at Janpath Market, UP Congress Committee’s media department head Kunwar Singh Nishad said in a statement.
However, they were halted near the municipal corporation office, leading to a scuffle with the heavy police force deployed there.
Protesters Burn CEC’s Effigy
Congress workers then resorted to burning an effigy of Gyanesh Kumar, but they were subsequently arrested, taken to Police Lines in police buses, and released late in the evening.
In Prayagraj, hundreds of Congress members, including MP Ujjwal Raman Singh and former MLA Anugrah Narayan Singh, participated in the event.
Gyanesh Kumar Appointed CEC in March 2024
Gyanesh Kumar, a 1988-batch Indian Administrative Service officer of the Kerala cadre, was appointed election commissioner to the poll panel on March 15, 2024, after retiring from service on January 31, 2024.
Kumar assumed charge as the 26th Chief Election Commissioner on February 19 last year.
Monday’s protest came amid an intensifying confrontation between the Congress and the Election Commission over the functioning of the poll panel, including the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
The Congress has been holding protests against the Election Commission in Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and other parts of the country, alleging that the poll panel has acted in favour of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has particularly targeted CEC Gyanesh Kumar, accusing him of taking unconstitutional steps, and described his alleged actions as “treason”.