Gandhi Jayanti Protests Against India's Election Chief Met With Mass Detentions

Delhi Police detained several hundred people in and around Jantar Mantar on Friday, Gandhi Jayanti, as opposition parties and student groups gathered to demand the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. Estimates of the number detained varied through the day, with early police figures putting it around 150 before later climbing past 500 and, by some counts, closer to 700.

Authorities had invoked Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita barring gatherings of five or more people, suspended mobile internet in the area, and shut entry and exit at around a dozen Metro stations, including Rajiv Chowk, Central Secretariat and New Delhi. Protesters were loaded onto buses as they arrived, though most were released later in the day. Senior figures including CPM's Brinda Karat, AAP's Atishi and Saurabh Bharadwaj, JDU's Manoj Jha, and AISA president Neha Bora were among those detained, several more than once.

Cockroach Party Draws Crowds in Mumbai

While Delhi was being cordoned off, the youth-led Cockroach Janta Party held its own rally at Mumbai's Shivaji Park, despite authorities denying permission for the venue. Founder Abhijeet Dipke had vowed to go ahead regardless, telling reporters the group was fighting those in power the same way Gandhi had once fought colonial rule. Thousands turned out through the afternoon under heavy police presence, with the party later claiming the turnout ran into the lakhs. Actor Naseeruddin Shah and musician Vishal Dadlani were among those seen at the venue. Dipke used the platform to renew his call for Kumar's resignation and warned that young protesters from across the country would head to Delhi if that did not happen soon.

Political Reactions From Across the Spectrum

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi backed the demonstrations in a social media post, saying thousands of young people had taken to the streets on Gandhi Jayanti and that a baton could stop a crowd but not a question. Activist Yogendra Yadav, who was himself detained, said the scenes in Delhi reminded him of the British era. Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut described the Mumbai gathering as a sequel to the July protests that forced the resignation of the federal education minister. The Election Commission, for its part, has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing in the voter roll revision process, maintaining that all its final decisions were unanimous, and on Friday it separately directed officials to speed up the registration of newly eligible voters and those who said they had been wrongly left off the rolls.

No Sign of the Protests Ending

By evening, organisers were already signalling the agitation was far from over. Neha Bora posted a video telling Delhi Police the movement had only just begun and called on supporters to return to Jantar Mantar the next day at 1 pm. Separately, opposition parties said they would launch a coordinated nationwide campaign the following week, with plans for lawmakers to march on the Election Commission's Delhi office and the Congress kicking off a state-by-state "Save Democracy Week" built around the same demand.

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