Delhi police detained more than 2,000 protesters on Saturday, Oct. 10, as security forces shut parts of the capital to stop a rally calling for Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar to resign. Authorities suspended mobile internet services in the central business district and closed dozens of metro stations and markets. The rally never began. Security forces sealed off Jantar Mantar, where the Cockroach movement had planned to gather thousands.
Election rolls at center
The protest focused on voter-list revisions that critics say disproportionately benefit Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The dispute concerns a verification exercise that removed roughly 130 million names from voter lists, according to figures reported by the Indian Express and Election Commission data cited in the article.
Election Commission data show that 63 million people had relocated, 30 million couldn't be traced and 28 million had died. The commission said officials removed entries identified during the draft revision process, and eligible voters wrongly deleted can re-enrol. Kumar hasn't commented. The Election Commission and BJP deny wrongdoing.
Opposition parties say voter deletions affected results in recent state elections won by the BJP and have cast a shadow over voting in the world's largest democracy. The BJP says Modi's popularity and India's economic growth explain its electoral success, and accuses opposition parties of spreading misinformation. Important state elections are expected to begin in early 2027.
A home ministry official, speaking anonymously, told Reuters that more than 2,000 people were detained in Delhi. Local media reported about 400 protesters were held in Mumbai, India's financial hub. Police had no immediate comment on the detentions.
Restrictions and response
Thousands of police and paramilitary personnel were deployed across Delhi, whose population is about 20 million. Security forces set up checkpoints on major roads and entry points, boarded buses to search for protesters and inspected vehicles. Barricades and concrete blocks disrupted traffic. Anti-riot vehicles equipped with tear-gas launchers guarded key routes.
The United Nations human rights office expressed concern about mass detentions before and during the protests. UN Human Rights Spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan said, “We call on the authorities to ensure that the right to peaceful assembly is fully respected and fulfilled.” He urged authorities to engage in “meaningful dialogue” to address what he called “broadly held” concerns.
India's mission to the UN in Geneva called the concerns “misplaced” and “an unwarranted interference in the internal affairs of India.” It said India's Constitution guarantees peaceful assembly, adding: “As in every democracy, Indian citizens exercise this right subject to reasonable restrictions in the interest of public order.” The exchange put the authorities’ security measures and the UN’s call for assembly rights at the center of the dispute over who should assess the response.
Detained leaders and political dispute
Police detained Cockroach Janta Party founder Abhijeet Dipke and senior leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka when their flight from Mumbai landed in Delhi, the group said. Television footage showed Dipke telling officers, “I have come to be arrested, arrest me ... I am not afraid of you guys.” One officer replied, “No, this is not an arrest,” and asked him to cooperate.
The movement condemned what it called the “authoritarian detention” of its leaders, demanded their release and vowed to continue protesting. “We will continue our protest tomorrow, day after ... until Gyanesh Kumar resigns. We will be on the streets,” CJP leader Ajinkya Shinde told reporters.
Television channels showed that police also detained opposition lawmakers and former chief ministers Mamata Banerjee of West Bengal, Arvind Kejriwal of Delhi and Pinarayi Vijayan of Kerala. Representatives of two digital news outlets said police briefly detained four reporters covering the demonstrations. A Reuters journalist was also briefly detained and released.
Rahul Gandhi, leader of the main opposition Congress party, said Modi's opponents wouldn't back down. Ravi Shankar Prasad, a senior BJP member, said the party didn't oppose demonstrations but rivals had “weaponised” street protests because of election defeats. The protests followed demonstrations over exam paper leaks that forced Modi's education minister to quit.