CJP vows renewed protest at Jantar Mantar as Delhi clamps down on demonstrators
The Cockroach Janta Party announced it will attempt another rally at Jantar Mantar on Sunday, despite a citywide police crackdown that has already detained about 7,000 people.
The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) declared that its supporters will try to gather again at Jantar Mantar on Sunday, even though Delhi Police continues a sweeping clampdown that has resulted in roughly 7,000 arrests. Ajinkya Shinde, appointed to lead the protest after the detention of leader Abhijeet Dipke, said the movement will persist until Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar steps down. Authorities have sealed Jantar Mantar, barred journalists, and positioned more than 40,000 police and Central Armed Police Forces along key routes and border crossings with Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.
While metro and railway stations have reopened, traffic will still be redirected at thirty points. Opposition leaders such as Rahul Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge, and former West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee have condemned the police actions and plan further demonstrations, including a march to the Supreme Court.
Why it matters
The protest highlights escalating political tension in Delhi and raises concerns about civil liberties and law enforcement tactics.
How this story developed
- Oct 2 Youth party and student groups rally to demand resignation of India's election chief
- Oct 6 Opposition MPs including Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi were briefly detained during a protest march toward the Election Commission.
- Oct 6 When police barred the INDIA bloc march to the Election Commission, Rahul Gandhi and his sister Priyanka redirected the demonstration to the Akashvani Bhavan building.
- Oct 7 Cockroach Janta Party filed a formal notice with Delhi police about an Oct 10 Jantar Mantar protest demanding the CEC’s resignation.
- Oct 7 Police detained Rahul and Priyanka Gandhi and other lawmakers during the protest and released them later that evening.
- Oct 8 India’s Election Commission is under intense pressure after a newspaper report claimed key decisions in a nationwide voter-roll cleanup were made without full commissioner approval, sparking large demonstrations demanding chief Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation.
- Oct 9 Delhi police say restrictions on the Cockroach Janta Party’s planned rally at Jantar Mantar are needed to avoid overcrowding and protect the public.
- Oct 9 Police have deployed over 20,000 officers and closed metro gates ahead of the planned protests.
- Oct 10 The Union Home Ministry approved the addition of about 11,000 Central Armed Police Forces personnel.
- Oct 10 Police detained many individuals in the hours before the scheduled rally.
- Oct 10 Mumbai police detained Tushar Gandhi, a Gandhi descendant, as part of the wider crackdown.
- Oct 10 The Supreme Court ordered that some train services remain operational despite earlier shutdown orders.
- Oct 10 Police deployed thousands of personnel, closed 45 metro stations and detained additional opposition figures and activists.
- Oct 10 Authorities detained over 1,000 activists and arrested more than 600 people with criminal histories.
In this story
Related stories
18 in this thread