Politics · India · 5 hrs ago
Delhi braces for more protests after court releases three movement leaders
A court in Delhi ordered the release of Cockroach Janta Party founder Abhijeet Dipke and two other senior leaders on Sunday, a day after they were detained.
The party had planned a large protest calling for Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar to resign.
The demonstrations oppose a nationwide revision of voter lists, which critics say could unfairly benefit Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party.
The Election Commission and the BJP deny that the process has been manipulated.
Election Commission data cited by the BJP says about 130 million names were removed from voter rolls during the exercise, including people who had moved or could not be traced.
Police detained more than 2,000 people during Saturday’s protest, and large police and paramilitary deployments remained in Delhi on Sunday.
The UN human rights office called for the right to peaceful assembly to be respected, while India’s foreign ministry rejected its criticism as interference.
The Cockroach Janta Party says it will continue its campaign until India’s election system is reformed.
A court in New Delhi ordered the release of Cockroach Janta Party founder Abhijeet Dipke and two other senior leaders on Sunday, after they were detained the previous day.
Delhi braced for a second day of protests demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
Critics say a voter-list revision disproportionately benefits Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party, while the Election Commission denies favouring any party.
Police detained more than 2,000 people during Saturday’s protests, according to reports cited by several outlets.
The UN human rights office called for the right to peaceful assembly to be respected, while India’s foreign ministry described the UN statement as interference in the country’s internal affairs.
- Who
- Cockroach Janta Party leaders, including founder Abhijeet Dipke, and protesters demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
- What
- A court ordered the release of three movement leaders as protests continued over voter-list revisions.
- When
- Sunday, October 11, 2026; the leaders had been detained on Saturday.
- Where
- New Delhi, India, with smaller protests also reported in other Indian cities.
- Why
- Protesters object to voter-list revisions that critics say disproportionately benefit the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party; the Election Commission denies favouring any party.
Protesters and opposition critics
Indian government, BJP and Election Commission
Voter-list revisions
Protesters and opposition critics
Critics say the changes disproportionately benefit the BJP and affect Muslim voters and other minorities.
Indian government, BJP and Election Commission
The Election Commission denies favouring any party, and the BJP says opponents are wrongly questioning legitimate electoral processes.
Protests and police response
Protesters and opposition critics
Opposition parties and critics say authorities used excessive force against protesters.
Indian government, BJP and Election Commission
India’s foreign ministry called the UN statement on peaceful assembly an unwarranted interference in India’s internal affairs.
We call on the authorities to ensure that the right to peaceful assembly is fully respected and fulfilled.
Haven’t signed any bond that says we won’t protest. We will hit the streets again,
Condition - no breach of peace for one year
The Indian Express reported that two of the chief election commissioner’s deputies had raised concerns internally about voter-list revisions, registration procedures and digital systems.
Police detained more than 2,000 people and restricted movement in central Delhi as protesters sought to gather at Jantar Mantar.
Dipke and two other Cockroach Janta Party leaders were detained after their plane landed in Delhi.
A court ordered the release of Dipke and the two other leaders, with a condition to maintain public peace.
Sporadic protests continued in Delhi, while metro stations reopened and mobile internet services were restored.
- Movement
- Cockroach Janta Party (CJP)
- Released leaders
- Abhijeet Dipke, Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka
- Protest demand
- Resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar
- Saturday detentions
- More than 2,000 people, according to reports cited by the outlets
- Names removed from electoral rolls
- About 130 million, according to Election Commission data cited by the BJP
- Voter-list figures
- 63 million people had relocated; 30 million could not be traced
Sources
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