Indore police’s 31 conditions for Rahul’s event: ‘Whole purpose is to intimidate’

A controversy erupted over 31 conditions issued by the Indore Police in Madhya Pradesh for Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s “Chhatro Ki Gunj” programme on Saturday (September 19). The event was shifted to a larger venue after permission to hold it at Nehru Stadium was denied.

Congress MP Pawan Khera subsequently released details of the police guidelines and criticised a provision requiring coaching centre operators to formally take responsibility for the safety of students attending the programme.

Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination cited

The police directives also referred to security protocols linked to the Verma Committee report, which examined the circumstances surrounding the 1991 assassination of Rahul's father, former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi. Organisers said registrations for the student interaction had crossed one million ahead of the scheduled programme.

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Delhi University professor Tanvir Aeijaz, speaking on The Federal’s Capital Beat show, described the conditions attached to the event as raising questions about fairness and equal political opportunity.

“The whole purpose is to intimidate... politics must be a game of fair play. Equal opportunity must be given to all the participants,” Aeijaz said during the discussion, which also featured senior journalists Deepak Tiwari and Milind Ghatwai.

Aeijaz questioned the invocation of the assassination in administrative instructions concerning the event. “Raking up Rahul Gandhi's father's (Rajiv Gandhi) assassination is a case to worry about... It's a statement heavily loaded,” he said, arguing that ensuring the safety of elected representatives and opposition leaders should remain a fundamental responsibility of the state.

‘One of the most bizarre orders’

He also stressed that public authorities and police should provide security without discriminating based on political affiliation. According to Aeijaz, Opposition parties, ruling parties and civil-society groups should have equal opportunities to engage with citizens.

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Tiwari also questioned the nature of the restrictions, saying he had not encountered a similar government directive linking an event permission process to the killing of a leader’s family member. He argued that limiting physical attendance would not necessarily prevent the programme from reaching a wider audience because its proceedings could still circulate through social-media platforms.

Tiwari said the issues attracting young people’s attention extended beyond political slogans, pointing to employment, education, examination paper leaks and the cost of education as concerns among students.

Ghatwai described the administrative order as “one of the most bizarre orders” he had encountered during his journalistic career. He questioned whether stringent conditions could substantially limit the dissemination of political messages in an environment where digital platforms allow events to reach audiences beyond the physical venue.

The restrictions came amid competing political messaging in Indore, where banners carrying the slogan “Jhoot Ki Gunj” were put up in response to the Congress programme. Congress workers later removed several of the counter-posters.