New Delhi, Oct 2: Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders and workers, who were detained during a protest at the national capital’s Jantar Mantar on Friday and were brought to the Fatehpur Beri Police Station in south Delhi, asserted that they were “not afraid of the police” while demanding Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar resignation.

The Opposition’s “vote theft” allegations against Gyanesh Kumar gained momentum following a media report claiming differences within the poll panel.

Speaking to media, former Delhi Chief Minister Atishi, who was among the detainees, said: “Indians got the right to vote when millions of freedom fighters sacrificed their lives to win independence for the country. Babasaheb Ambedkar gave us the right to vote,” while accusing the BJP-led Centre of attempting to take away the right to vote, “through Gyanesh Kumar”.

“No FIR is being registered against Gyanesh Kumar over vote theft, but those protesting to demand his resignation are being brutally picked up and taken to police stations. But we are not afraid of the police. The fight for democracy will continue,” she asserted.

AAP spokesperson Anurag Dhanda, who was also detained, echoed a similar view.

“We are simply demanding that democracy should not be destroyed. We were saying that people should have the right to vote. Gyanesh Kumar took away the right to vote and committed vote theft, yet the vote thief is not being put in jail. Instead, they brought us here and made us sit at the police station. This is a complete dictatorship of the Modi government,” he told media.

Meanwhile, several other AAP leaders, including the party’s Delhi chief Saurabh Bharadwaj and MLA Jarnail Singh, took part in a protest march in the national capital.

Talking to media, Bharadwaj cited agitations across the country by all age groups, demanding the resignation of the CEC.

“Various political parties, social organisations, youth groups, student unions, and students from colleges and universities are protesting across the country to save the country — to protect the country’s democracy. So, Gyanesh Kumar will have to be removed, reforms must be made in the Election Commission, and the irregularities in the SIR must be rolled back. This is the only solution, and the government will have to accept it,” he said.

Jarnail Singh added: “The two fellow Election Commissioners have exposed the CEC. As long as we were saying it, it could have been termed as allegations, but now their crime has been proven. Gyanesh Kumar should face a case of treason, be arrested, and be dismissed immediately for deleting votes to help the BJP.”

“The country won’t accept this kind of hooliganism,” he told media.

AAP MLA Sanjeev Jha accused the BJP and Gyanesh Kumar of “conspiring to end democracy”.

“A case of treason and betrayal against the country’s democracy should be filed against Gyanesh Kumar, and he should be immediately locked up in jail,” he added.

Amritsar, Oct 2: The Border Security Force (BSF) on Friday thwarted a major infiltration attempt across the India-Pakistan border in Punjab by neutralising two Pakistani intruders who tried to sneak into Indian territory in the state’s Tarn Taran district, officials said.

The incident occurred in the BOP Rajoke area of ​​Tarn Taran early in the day.

According to sources, the BSF troopers swung into action after noticing suspicious movement near the border and challenged the purported infiltrators.

At least three individuals were moving towards the Indian border from the Chattanwala area on the Pakistani side, the sources said, adding that they were challenged and warned against moving any further. When they did not pay any heed and kept moving towards the Indian side, the BSF personnel opened fire.

While two infiltrators were shot dead, a third one managed to run back. The identity of the neutralised Pakistani intruders is yet to be ascertained.

The dead bodies have been handed over to police for a post-mortem examination and further proceedings are underway, in close coordination with the Punjab Police.

The incident underscores the level of alertness maintained by security agencies regarding infiltration attempts along the India-Pakistan border in the Punjab sector.

The incident comes amid continued security concerns along Punjab’s 553-km-long international border with Pakistan, which has witnessed several infiltration and cross-border smuggling attempts in recent years. However, several of these were successfully foiled by the BSF jawans.

Meanwhile, Punjab Police dismantled two illegal arms and narcotics supply networks and apprehended four accused and recovered 10 kg of heroin and 10 pistols.

Preliminary investigation revealed that the accused are allegedly linked to foreign-based smugglers and are involved in procuring illegal weapons and narcotics, Director General of Police Gaurav Yadav said.

Two first information reports (FIRs) were registered in Amritsar. Further investigation is underway to uncover the complete network and establish the backward and forward linkages, he added.

In a related earlier development, Amritsar Rural Police had dismantled an illegal arms and narcotics supply network with the arrest of three people, comprising a woman, her husband and her brother. The police had recovered 10.030 kg of heroin, two sophisticated assault rifles, including an AK-47 and an AK-56, along with three magazines and 10 cartridges from their possession.

Lucknow, Oct 2: Samajwadi Party (SP) President Akhilesh Yadav on Friday said he would welcome leaders from rival camps, willing to join the opposition’s efforts to defeat the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), into his party, saying that elections are a time to “forget past mistakes”.

Interacting with reporters here, the SP chief said: “This is the time for Rajya Sabha elections, and elections are a time for coming together. It offers an opportunity to forget past mistakes, stand with others, and stand up for principles.”

“If anyone feels that our democracy, our Constitution, and our country’s economy are under attack, due to rising inflation, E20 being blended into petrol — if they believe these are wrong decisions (by the Centre), then…it is a time to come together before the Rajya Sabha and (Assembly) elections. That is why we should forget all bitterness during this time,” he added.

“Those who have been deviated from their path, those of our friends who want to join us…we will forget everything that took place in the past.”

Akhilesh Yadav also came out in support of the INDIA bloc’s proposed ‘Save Democracy’ march even as the BJP-led NDA continues to criticise him for skipping the opposition alliance’s recent meeting in New Delhi.

“Everyone should unite to ‘Save Democracy’. Together, we must come forward to save this beautiful country, its rich history of democracy, and our Constitution,” he said.

He also launched an attack on Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath-led government over flooding issues being faced by those residing in areas near the Gomti River.

“I am saddened by the fact that many families living along the banks of the Gomti River are facing a crisis. There has been waterlogging in the area for months. This government is asleep. Those who wanted to create smart cities and clean the rivers ended up cleaning out the budget, but the rivers remain uncleaned,” he said.

On Gandhi Jayanti, Akhilesh Yadav underlined that Mahatma Gandhi showed us the path of truth, non-violence and taught us the spirit of sacrifice.

“Father of the nation, Mahatma Gandhi ji worked towards fostering goodwill, brotherhood, and mutual love in society, and he forced the British to leave India. Today, on his birth anniversary, as we remember Mahatma Gandhi ji’s contributions, we take a resolve to work towards fulfilling his goal — to ensure that the last person, the poorest person, is connected to the mainstream,” he said.