Star Metro - India 'cockroach' movement says thousands detained in Delhi protest

The protest is the culmination of weeks of opposition mobilisation following allegations of misconduct during a nationwide voter roll revision by the Election Commission of India (ECI).

Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke and two other leaders were detained before disembarking from a flight in the capital, the group said in a statement.

"They're being denied access to their lawyers and cut off from all contact with others," it said, adding the trio had been taken to "an undisclosed location".

The CJP -- which began in May as a satirical online movement -- also said that thousands of protesters were detained in New Delhi as they attempted to march to the main Jantar Mantar protest site, defying a massive security clampdown.

"More than 15,000 protesters have been detained," Ajinkya Shinde, a CJP leader, said at a news conference in Delhi.

Police did not immediately respond to AFP's request for comment on detentions.

"We will be back, let them fill up all the jails," Shinde said.

Dozens of protesters shouted anti-government slogans as they were taken away in police vehicles, AFP reporters witnessed.

The Hindu newspaper reported more than 5,000 protesters had been detained, although it was not immediately possible to verify that number.

Media outlets, including the Scroll and Newslaundry, said their journalists had also been briefly detained.

Calls for ECI chief Gyanesh Kumar to step down have intensified in recent weeks as opposition parties and critics said the voter roll revision could disenfranchise millions of constituents, benefitting Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

The ECI has rejected allegations of impropriety, saying the revision was intended to remove duplicate and ineligible voters, including "foreign illegal immigrants".

Ahead of the protest, authorities in the capital deployed thousands of police, closed dozens of metro stations, cancelled more than 200 trains and temporarily shut down mobile internet around the protest site.

The demonstrations are widely seen as a reprise of the "cockroach" movement's mass mobilisation in July, which led to the education minister stepping down over an examination scandal.

This time, protesters are demanding Kumar's resignation and a halt to the voter revision exercise.

- 'Protect the constitution' -

The accusations are a fresh challenge for 76-year-old Modi during his third term in office.

Opposition parties have long alleged that legitimate voters are being struck off lists in India, the world's largest democracy with 1.4 billion people.

The voter list overhaul, which began in 2025, has led to more than 133 million names being excluded from draft rolls, according to Indian media reports citing ECI data.

The issue flared up last month when the Indian Express newspaper reported that key decisions linked to the revision were likely taken without the approval of two of the three election commissioners.

The ECI, a constitutional body, says all its decisions were unanimous and legally valid.

Angry demonstrators told AFP they were being denied the right to protest peacefully.

Saransh, a university graduate, walked several miles after navigating security barricades to get close to the Jantar Mantar site.

"I am here to protect the constitution," said the 24-year-old, who gave only one name.

"Why do I need permission to peacefully express my opinion?"

- 'Keep protesting' -

Amnesty International denounced the "lockdown-like restrictions" and the leader of the opposition Congress party, Rahul Gandhi, called on young people to continue with the rallies.

"Youth of India, I am proud of you. Keep protesting. We are standing with you," he said.

The United Nations' human rights office urged India to release those "arbitrarily detained" in the protests and expressed concern at reports of mass detentions.

India's UN mission in Geneva responded that those concerns were "misplaced".

BJP spokesman Sambit Patra said on Saturday the CJP had failed in its attempt to spread "anarchy".

Political analyst Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay told AFP the protest comes at a time when Modi appears to be "at his weakest politically and individually".

"I see this becoming a bigger challenge in the coming months," Mukhopadhyay said.

A.Landry--SMC