Defying a massive capital-wide police crackdown that saw over 4,000 demonstrators and several senior Opposition leaders taken into custody, the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) has vowed to intensify its agitation demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar.
Addressing a late-evening press conference in New Delhi on Saturday, October 10, CJP leader Ajinkya Shinde announced that the movement against alleged electoral roll irregularities under the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) program would continue indefinitely.
”Daily Marches to Jantar Mantar”: CJP Refuses to Back Down
Handed the operational leadership of the movement after founder Abhijeet Dipke, Saurav Das, and Ashutosh Ranka were intercepted and detained upon landing at Delhi Airport, Shinde declared that state action would not extinguish public resentment.
”Every day, there will be marches to Jantar Mantar from now on, until Gyanesh Kumar is sacked as CEC,” Shinde told reporters. “We will come back stronger.”
The announcement comes after a day of unprecedented security measures in the national capital, featuring over 40,000 police and paramilitary personnel, spike strips, concrete barriers, internet suspensions, and the temporary closure of 45 Metro stations.
International Concern and Mass Opposition Detentions
Saturday’s heavy-handed policing drew international attention, with the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) expressing deep concern over reports of “mass detentions” involving demonstrators, civil society members, journalists, and lawyers. The UN called on Indian authorities to respect the fundamental right to peaceful assembly and unconditionally release those arbitrarily detained.
Concurrently, high-profile political leaders who attempted to march in solidarity with the CJP—including former Chief Ministers Arvind Kejriwal, Mamata Banerjee, Pinarayi Vijayan, and Manik Sarkar—were placed under preventive detention at various locations across the city.
While Delhi Police confirmed late Saturday evening that most temporary detainees held across designated sports stadium facilities were being released under standard administrative protocols, law enforcement maintained that legal proceedings against primary organizers would continue. In response, the Election Commission has maintained that its nationwide voter list revisions represent a routine, transparent exercise aimed at weeding out duplicate and ineligible entries.
