After day-long row, two Congress leaders surrender in Gurugram

Political tensions escalated in Gurugram on Monday as the Congress staged a protest outside the Police Commissioner’s office over the alleged disappearance of its two district presidents, three days after they waved black flags at Chief Minister Nayab Singh Saini’s convoy.

While the Congress and the families of rural district president Vardhan Rao and urban district president Pankaj Dawar claimed the two leaders had been untraceable since August 21, the police maintained that they were not missing but absconding in connection with a case registered over the security breach during the Chief Minister’s convoy.

The two leaders were among Congress workers who displayed black flags at the CM’s convoy while it was on its way to a Chaupal programme linked to the GenH Startup Summit 2026 at Gurugram University.

Haryana Pradesh Congress Committee president Rao Narender Singh led a large contingent of party leaders and workers to the office of Police Commissioner Sibash Kabiraj. The protesters submitted a memorandum seeking information about the whereabouts of the two leaders.

Former state Congress president Udai Bhan, MLAs Aftab Ahmed, BB Batra and Induraj Narwal, several former ministers and Mahila Congress office-bearers also participated in the protest.

Addressing the gathering, Rao Narender Singh accused the police of targeting Youth Congress workers and district presidents in an attempt to suppress dissent. He demanded the withdrawal of FIRs registered against Youth Congress and NSUI workers and the two district presidents.

He also sought an independent medical examination of workers who had allegedly been assaulted in police custody, preservation of CCTV footage of the incident and departmental action against policemen found guilty of misconduct.

Meanwhile, several Congress supporters and YouTube journalists covering the protest claimed that their social media pages and channels had been blocked following the black flag demonstration. The Gurugram Police, however, did not officially confirm or deny the claims.

Police spokesperson Inspector Sandeep rejected the Congress allegation that anyone was missing.

“Nobody is missing. The Congress people did come to protest, but nobody was manhandled or anything of that sort. The two named individuals are absconding, and the police are looking for them in connection with the case registered over the security breach,” he said.

The police said both men had been named in the case related to the security breach and were evading arrest. Rao Narender Singh warned that if the demands were not accepted, the Congress would intensify the agitation across Haryana. He said Youth Congress and NSUI workers would take to the streets in every district of the state.

Meanwhile, both Vardhan Rao and Pankaj Dawar resurfaced late on Monday night, surrendering directly at DCP (West) Karan Goyal’s office along with five lawyers. They were granted bail on the spot.