High drama unfolded on the Delhi-Jaipur National Highway (NH-248) on Tuesday as the Haryana Police cracked down on a massive protest organised by the District Congress Committee.

Dozens of party workers, including prominent local leaders, were detained and bundled into police vans after they attempted to hold a recitation of the ‘Sundarkand Path’ outside ‘Gurukamal’ — the BJP district headquarters.

The Congress had launched a “Sadbuddhi Yagya” campaign, and led by Congress district presidents Vardhan Yadav (rural) and Pankaj Dawar (urban), it organised the ‘Sundarkand Path’ to protest the embezzlement controversy surrounding the Ayodhya Ram Temple. The party accused ruling BJP leaders of shielding those involved.

To prevent clashes between rival party workers, the Gurugram district administration had imposed Section 163, BNSS, banning the assembly of five or more unauthorised persons within a 300-metre radius of the BJP headquarters.

When the mobilisation reached the heavily fortified barricades near the highway, the police moved to block their path. Despite being served legal notices and warned repeatedly by on-duty magistrates that their gathering was unauthorised, Congress workers tried to push past the barricades.

To clear the area, police personnel launched a swift containment operation, physically lifting and dragging several protesters—including female party workers and district leaders—into police buses. Several leaders alleged that they were manhandled.

“They tore our clothes, used force, and physically assaulted us just because we wanted to pray,” alleged Vardhan Yadav. “Today, the BJP has exposed itself by deploying police to stop devotees from chanting the name of Lord Ram. This is a direct insult to Ram bhakts.”

Gurugram police administrative officials refuted the allegations of physical assault or unnecessary force. The police insisted that the administration had acted solely to preserve public order.

“We had issued prior notices and warned them multiple times that Section 163 was in place. They intentionally tried to block a major highway, which was causing inconvenience to commuting citizens. We exercised minimal physical force only to detain 40-50 protesters who refused to comply with the law,” said the police.

The detained party workers were transported to police stations under preventive custody.