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The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) and several student organisations have vowed to march to Delhi's Jantar Mantar every day until Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar resigns or is removed, escalating protests over allegations of electoral irregularities and alleged collusion with the ruling BJP. The announcement followed a major police operation in the national capital on Saturday, during which more than 1,500 people were detained, according to the figures provided in the reports.

CJP leader Ajinkya Shinde, who was designated to lead the demonstration in the absence of party founder Abhijeet Dipke, announced the daily protest plan as several senior political figures and activists remained in custody. The demonstrators allege that the Election Commission has failed to address concerns about alleged “vote chori”, or electoral fraud. These allegations remain contested.

CJP Raises Concerns Over Leaders' Detention

Shinde said the demonstrations would continue until Kumar was removed from office. CJP representatives also accused police of mistreating protesters and said they were initially unable to establish where Dipke and other detained leaders had been taken after their flight arrived in Delhi around 11 am.

The party said Dipke's paternal grandmother had died in Maharashtra while he was in custody. CJP representatives alleged that he was being treated inhumanely and was being prevented from attending her last rites. Police, according to the supplied account, said Dipke had been informed that he could leave to attend the funeral. His release status remained unclear by Saturday evening.

Dipke was detained alongside CJP leaders Ashutosh Ranka and Saurav Das. The operation also swept up prominent political figures, including Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal, Trinamool Congress founder Mamata Banerjee, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan and former Tripura chief minister Manik Sarkar, according to the report.

Police said the demonstration lacked the required permission. Authorities deployed approximately 25,000 personnel from Delhi Police and central paramilitary forces. The measures reportedly included the closure of gates at 45 metro stations, cancellation of more than 250 trains and suspension of internet services within a four-kilometre radius of Jantar Mantar.

Student Groups and Opposition Leaders Join Protest

The campaign is expanding beyond the capital. Srijan Bhattacharyya, general secretary of the Student Federation of India (SFI), called for broader coordination among student groups and said peaceful demonstrations would take place across the country from Sunday.

He argued that protesters would continue gathering wherever police barricades prevented them from reaching designated protest sites. The CJP and student organisations have framed the detentions as an attempt to restrict their right to demonstrate, while authorities have cited restrictions on the planned gathering.

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi also backed the protesters. Speaking from Chennai, where he was attending a student outreach event, Gandhi urged young people to continue their demonstrations. He said detaining political leaders and students would not end the movement.

The Congress-led INDIA bloc has announced another step. Gandhi said opposition leaders were scheduled to meet Chief Justice Surya Kant at the Supreme Court on Monday to submit a memorandum concerning their demands.

The bloc had submitted a memorandum to President Droupadi Murmu on Friday. Its four demands included Kumar's resignation, repeal of the 2023 law granting legal immunity to the chief election commissioner and election commissioners, suspension of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voter rolls, and restoration of 13.3 crore voters allegedly removed from electoral rolls. The bloc also called for a return to paper ballots and sought the repeal of recent Assembly election results in constituencies where it claims conclusive evidence of electoral fraud exists.

The allegations concerning voter deletions and election integrity have not been established merely by the submission of the memorandum.

BJP Defends Election Commission and Police Action

The BJP rejected the opposition's criticism. Party spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad defended Kumar and the voter-roll revision exercise, arguing that constitutional democracy operates through Parliament and established institutions rather than street protests.

The response highlights the central dispute: opposition parties are demanding institutional changes and investigations into alleged electoral irregularities, while the BJP maintains that the democratic process should proceed through established legal and parliamentary channels.

Demonstrations were also reported outside Delhi. In Mumbai, police detained around 200 people protesting at August Kranti Maidan, including Mahatma Gandhi's great-grandson Tushar Gandhi and actor Imran Khan. Other protests and detentions were reported in Ahmedabad and Chennai.

Key Takeaways

• Daily demonstrations: CJP says it will march to Jantar Mantar until Gyanesh Kumar resigns or is removed.

• Mass detentions: Reports put the number of people detained across Delhi on Saturday at more than 1,500.

• Opposition demands: The INDIA bloc is pressing for changes to election administration, voter-roll revision and voting methods.

• National spread: Student groups and demonstrators in several cities have joined the campaign.

What Happens Next?

The next developments will depend on the status of detained protesters, the planned student demonstrations and the opposition bloc's proposed meeting at the Supreme Court. The Election Commission's response to the allegations, along with any official clarification on the voter-roll revision, will also shape the dispute.

Whether the protests can sustain daily participation remains uncertain. For now, the confrontation has moved beyond one gathering in Delhi into a wider debate over election administration, public protest and institutional accountability.

What measures would best address concerns about voter-roll accuracy while preserving public confidence in India's electoral process?

Disclaimer: This article is based on the supplied reports and attributed statements; allegations and disputed claims have not been independently verified.