Key facts
- Indian police detained leaders of the 'cockroach' youth movement on Tuesday.
- The movement demands the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
- Protesters allege controversial voter list revisions favor Prime Minister Narendra Modi's BJP.
- Over 130 million names were removed from voter lists in revisions that began last year.
- Opposition parties allege deletions disproportionately affect Muslim voters and minorities.
Top leaders of India's 'cockroach' youth movement were detained on Tuesday after they entered the grounds of a historic observatory, chanting slogans demanding the chief election commissioner's resignation over controversial voter list revisions. Supporters of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) and opposition groups have held almost daily protests this month to demand commissioner Gyanesh Kumar's resignation, alleging the revisions favor Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
The Election Commission has denied favouring any party and stated that wrongly deleted voters can re-enrol. The BJP has accused rivals of trying to undermine democracy by questioning legitimate electoral processes.
Thousands joined a protest march by opposition groups on Monday. Delhi Police announced on Monday that the Jantar Mantar open air observatory was no longer designated as an official protest site. The CJP said its leaders Ashutosh Ranka, Saurav Das, and Ajinkya Shinde were among about 20 volunteers who "sneaked" inside the observatory to "reclaim" it and were detained.
"You cannot denotify the resistance," founder Abhijeet Dipke said on X after their detention. A CJP livestream showed about a dozen volunteers jumping a gate and barricades to reach the site, where they waved the Indian flag and chanted slogans before police detained them.
The youth movement has mobilized protests in recent months against issues ranging from government school infrastructure to jobs, and is considered among the biggest political challenges to Modi and his BJP. Earlier this year, a sit-in by its supporters at Jantar Mantar forced the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over exam paper leaks.
The latest protests erupted after the Indian Express newspaper reported last month that Kumar's two deputies raised concerns internally about voter list revisions. The change, which started last year, removed over 130 million names from voter lists, including 28 million who died, 63 million who relocated, and 30 million who could not be traced. Opposition parties allege the deletions disproportionately affect Muslim voters and other minorities, allegations the poll panel and BJP reject.