Opposition bloc convenes, threatens fresh protests over election roll deletions and leader detention

On Friday, members of the INDIA bloc are set to assemble in the Central Hall of Samvidhan Sadan to seek an audience with President Droupadi Murmu over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls, warning that “all options are on the table” if the meeting is denied. The bloc has already written to the President on October 2 and followed up on October 5, but has not received a response, and it has identified several alternative venues for possible demonstrations, including Rashtrapati Bhavan, Seva Teerth, and the homes of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah.

The opposition continues to call for the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, citing reports of voter deletions. In parallel, the Cockroach Janata Party alleges that its organisational co-in-charge Deepak Baliyan was detained from his Rajasthan home on Thursday evening, though he was released later that night, raising concerns ahead of its planned protest at Jantar Mantar on October 10. The party also staged a rally in Bengaluru’s Freedom Park, featuring a “people’s tribunal” and a symbolic “chappal protest,” with participants such as actor-activist Prakash Raj and YouTuber Dhruv Rathee demanding an independent inquiry and restoration of the January 2025 voter list.