Hijabi Muslim woman arrested in India over election protest
- Opposition activists and youth groups rallied demanding CEC Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation over mass voter-roll deletions.
- India’s Supreme Court set Monday hearings on voter-list revision petitions following criticism from Justice Ujjal Bhuyan.
- Satirical group Cockroach Janta Party led key protests, threatening national action if the CEC remains.
- Security crackdowns at Jantar Mantar resulted in sexual harassment complaints filed by female journalists against Delhi officers.
Opposition activists and youth movements across India staged a third consecutive day of street demonstrations on Sunday, calling for the immediate resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over allegations of widespread electoral roll manipulation.
The wave of demonstrations -which began on Friday- centers on a large-scale revision of voter lists managed by the Election Commission of India (ECI) that resulted in the removal of millions of registered voters.
While the ECI has formally rejected all allegations of misconduct, Kumar has refrained from making public comments regarding the demand for his resignation.
The demonstrations occurred on the eve of a scheduled Monday hearing by the Supreme Court of India, which is set to evaluate multiple petitions challenging the key voter-list decisions.
Cockroach Janta Party joins protests
In Mumbai, thousands of marchers carrying national flags and anti-Kumar placards filled the streets to demand transparency in the electoral process.
Demonstrators prominently included supporters of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), a satirical movement founded online in May that gained national prominence after successfully leading a campaign that forced the resignation of the country’s education minister.
“Mumbai is out on the streets again for free and fair elections!” CJP chief Abhijeet Dipke wrote in a social media statement on Sunday.
In New Delhi, authorities deployed heavy police contingents around the India Gate monument, erecting barricades to block advancing crowds.
