Indian police have detained more than 2,000 protesters and the founder of the Cockroach youth movement in New Delhi amid a security crackdown on a demonstration demanding the resignation of the country’s chief election commissioner.
Thousands of police and paramilitary personnel were deployed across the capital on Saturday, while mobile internet services were suspended in the central business district and dozens of metro stations and markets were closed to prevent the rally.
The protest, organised by the Cockroach movement, targeted Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over revisions to voter lists that critics allege disproportionately benefit Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
A Home Ministry official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters that more than 2,000 people had been detained in Delhi. Local media reported that about 400 protesters were also detained in Mumbai.
The demonstration was scheduled to take place at Jantar Mantar in central Delhi, but security forces sealed off the area before protesters could gather.
The United Nations human rights office expressed concern over the mass detentions and urged Indian authorities to respect the right to peaceful assembly.
“We call on the authorities to ensure that the right to peaceful assembly is fully respected and fulfilled,” UN human rights spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan said.
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He also called for meaningful dialogue to address the concerns raised by the protesters.
However, India’s mission to the UN in Geneva rejected the criticism as “misplaced”, describing it as unwarranted interference in the country’s internal affairs.
The mission said India’s Constitution guaranteed the right to peaceful assembly, subject to reasonable restrictions in the interest of public order.
Movement Leaders Detained
The Cockroach Janta Party said its founder, Abhijeet Dipke, and senior leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka were detained when their flight from Mumbai landed in Delhi.
Television footage showed Dipke challenging officers who approached him aboard the aircraft.
The movement condemned what it described as the “authoritarian detention” of its leaders, demanded their release and vowed to continue the protests.
“We will continue our protest tomorrow, day after … until Gyanesh Kumar resigns. We will be on the streets,” CJP leader Ajinkya Shinde told reporters.
Opposition lawmakers and former chief ministers, including Mamata Banerjee of West Bengal, Arvind Kejriwal of Delhi and Pinarayi Vijayan of Kerala, were also detained, according to television reports.
Representatives of two digital news outlets said police briefly detained four of their reporters covering the demonstrations. A Reuters journalist was also briefly detained before being released.
Voter List Revisions Spark Protests
The demonstrations follow allegations that election authorities improperly revised voter registers ahead of recent state elections.
Protests intensified after the Indian Express reported that two election commissioners had questioned Kumar’s voter-list revision exercise, which removed about 130 million names from the registers.
Election Commission data showed that the deleted entries included approximately 63 million people who had relocated, 30 million who could not be traced and 28 million who had died.
The commission and the BJP have denied allegations of wrongdoing, while the election body has said eligible voters whose names were wrongly removed can re-enrol.
Opposition parties contend that the deletions affected the outcome of recent state elections won by the BJP and have raised concerns about the integrity of future polls.
The ruling party maintains that its electoral success reflects Modi’s popularity and India’s economic growth, accusing opposition parties of spreading misinformation.
The protests represent a significant challenge for Modi’s government as India prepares for a series of state elections beginning in early 2027.
The unrest follows demonstrations over examination paper leaks earlier this year, which put the government under pressure and led to the resignation of the education minister.
