NEW DELHI: By the time Saturday drew to a close, the protest against chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar had stretched far beyond its planned venue at Jantar Mantar.In Delhi, thousands were detained before the Cockroach Janta Party’s (CJP) demonstration could take shape.In Mumbai and Bengaluru, solidarity protests ran into police barricades and detentions, while Ahmedabad saw activists and students detained during a separate gathering.The CJP had called for ‘Jantar Mantar 2.0’ to demand Kumar’s resignation over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.Its founder Abhijeet Dipke and other senior leaders were detained after arriving in Delhi from Mumbai. By the end of the day, police had detained more than 7,000 people in the capital, while hundreds more were held during demonstrations elsewhere.All the detainees were released by Delhi Police later in evening, except the 3 party leaders where due legal process will be followed, police sources quoted by news agency ANI quoted.
Delhi: A protest stopped before it could gather pace
Delhi Police detained more than 7,000 people attempting to reach Jantar Mantar, among them Dipke, co-convenor Saurav Das, leader Ashutosh Ranka, AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal, YouTuber Dhruv Rathee and several Left leaders and activists.Former Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan was also detained along with other CPI(M) leaders.Police had denied permission for the CJP demonstration, citing public safety, traffic management and law-and-order concerns.Barricades went up along routes leading to Jantar Mantar, personnel were deployed at key locations and drones were used to monitor movement. Detentions were reported near Regal Cinema, Minto Bridge and Akashwani Bhawan.Stone pelting was reported near Akashwani Bhawan which left two police personnel injured.The day also saw a political face-off over the crackdown. Delhi chief minister Rekha Gupta accused Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and Kejriwal of trying to turn the capital into a “battleground” with the CJP, which she called their “B-Team”.Delhi BJP president and Union minister Harsh Malhotra described the planned demonstration as a “complete flop”.For those detained, however, the day did not end with their arrest. Vijayan, 82, said police made him, Rajya Sabha MP John Brittas and Kerala MLA KN Balagopal travel around Delhi in a vehicle for nearly three-and-a-half hours before taking them to Mandir Marg police station.Brittas alleged that police had not taken Vijayan’s age and health into account or ensured he received his medicines on time. The leaders were released by evening.
Mumbai: Tushar Gandhi, Imran Khan among 600 detained
In Mumbai, the call for solidarity brought protesters to August Kranti Maidan, Hutatma Chowk and other locations.Around 600 people were detained across the city, including activist Tushar Gandhi, great-grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, actor Imran Khan and CPI(M) workers.Around 200 people were detained at August Kranti Maidan, where members of Gandhi’s organisation, ‘Hum Bharat Ke Log’, and CPI(M) activists had gathered. Workers of the Vanchit Bahujan Aghadi also protested at Hutatma Chowk.DCP Ragasudha R said the detained protesters had been released, while further legal proceedings were underway.She said around 400 people were detained at Nana Chowk near August Kranti Maidan, where around 500 police personnel had been deployed. Registration of FIRs was in progress.Khan offered a wry account of his detention from inside a police van: “Apparently, I am going for a drive.” In a video that surfaced later, he questioned why he was being manhandled and said he was not part of any organisation.Tushar Gandhi, who was picked up from Bandra and taken to DN Nagar police station, was released around nine hours later.Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Aditya Thackeray visited the police station seeking his release. Some protesters alleged that police had manhandled them during the detentions.Police said preventive action was taken because August Kranti Maidan is not a designated protest site under a Bombay high court order.
Bengaluru: Students stopped short of EC office
In Bengaluru, the protest took the form of a march that never reached its destination.Student organisations, including AISA, SFI, AIDSO and AISF, gathered at Freedom Park and attempted to march towards the Election Commission office, demanding the scrapping of the SIR process and Kumar’s resignation.Heavy police deployment and barricades blocked their way, according to AISA Karnataka.The organisation alleged that protesters were detained when they tried to bypass the barricades and condemned the action as suppression of the right to protest.It demanded the release of those detained, removal of the barricades and permission for the demonstration to proceed peacefully.The EC office was only a few hundred metres from Freedom Park, the organisation said.
Ahmedabad: Detentions on the streets, allegations of house arrest
In Ahmedabad, several political activists and members of Gen-Z were detained as they gathered near Ellisbridge in the evening. They raised slogans including “vote thief, step down”, “remove Gyanesh Kumar” and “save democracy”.NSUI leader Shubham Thakar, who had earlier waved black flags at Kumar’s convoy during the CEC’s visit to Ahmedabad, was among those detained. Activist Subodh Parmar said organisers had sought permission for a gathering near MJ Library but were denied it.The street protests followed allegations by activists that police had visited their homes or kept them under house arrest ahead of the Delhi demonstration.Activist Dev Desai claimed police were stationed outside his home from Friday morning until Saturday morning. Theatre director Savan Zalariya said police visited his home and questioned him about plans to travel to Delhi or organise a local demonstration.Ahmedabad police commissioner Anupam Singh Gehlot said action had been taken as required and that nobody was under detention at the time of his statement.The preparations for the Delhi protest had also had a knock-on effect on rail travel. Western Railway cancelled the Swarna Jayanti Rajdhani Express from Ahmedabad to New Delhi on Friday as a precautionary measure, an official said.
