Key facts
- Two 'Cockroach' movement leaders, Ashutosh Ranka and Saurav Das, had their custody extended by two days.
- The leaders were detained for scaling barricades and entering the Jantar Mantar observatory.
- The protest occurred after Jantar Mantar was removed from designated protest sites.
- The group is demanding the resignation of the chief election commissioner over voter list revisions.
- The Election Commission denies favouring any party and states wrongly deleted voters can re-enrol.
An Indian court on Monday extended the judicial custody of two leaders of the 'Cockroach' movement, Ashutosh Ranka and Saurav Das, by two days. They were detained last week for protesting at the Jantar Mantar observatory, which is no longer a designated protest site. The two leaders had scaled barricades and chanted slogans before being detained by police. The arrests are part of ongoing protests demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged manipulation of voter lists. The Election Commission has denied any bias, while the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party has accused opponents of undermining democratic processes. The 'Cockroach' movement has become a significant political challenge to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government.