New Delhi/Mumbai: More than 700 people were detained in Delhi on Friday as opposition parties, student groups and activists staged protests demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities linked to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
The protests were held in Delhi and Mumbai, with similar demonstrations reported in Jaipur and Ahmedabad.
In Delhi, members of the Aam Aadmi Party, Congress and Left parties joined the demonstration at Jantar Mantar. Former Delhi chief minister Atishi and AAP Delhi chief Saurabh Bhardwaj were among those detained by police.
The Delhi Police had denied permission for the protest and imposed restrictions across the New Delhi district, citing public safety concerns. Police and Rapid Action Force personnel were deployed around Jantar Mantar.
Police also closed entry and exit gates at eleven Metro stations in central Delhi, including Janpath, Patel Chowk, Central Secretariat, Rajiv Chowk, Seva Teerth, Mandi House and Lok Kalyan Marg. Interchange facilities remained available at selected stations.
The protest had been called by the All India Students’ Association (AISA), Rajya Sabha MP Manoj Jha and Supreme Court lawyer Prashant Bhushan. The organisers were seeking Kumar’s removal, alleging irregularities in electoral rolls and the conduct of elections.
Delhi Police said Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita was in force in New Delhi and that protests, demonstrations and marches were not permitted in the area.
Reacting to the detentions of protesters in Delhi, Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi said force could stop people from gathering but could not silence their concerns. In a post on X, he alleged that young protesters were being detained for raising questions over what he called “vote theft.”
The protests come amid continuing controversy over the SIR exercise and the functioning of the Election Commission.
The immediate trigger was a report by The Indian Express which said Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had raised objections on at least 14 occasions over a 10-month period to decisions and procedures related to the SIR exercise and other electoral matters.
The report intensified opposition parties’ allegations of “vote theft”. The Election Commission, however, has denied wrongdoing and said differences of views among election commissioners are part of the decision-making process.
In Mumbai, thousands gathered at Shivaji Park for a protest organised by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), despite police denying permission for the demonstration. Protesters carried the national flag and placards demanding Kumar’s resignation.
CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke addressed the gathering on Gandhi Jayanti and said the protest was a tribute to Mahatma Gandhi.
Police had deployed a large security contingent around Shivaji Park and barricaded entry routes, while a temporary stage set up for the protest was dismantled. A smaller stage was later permitted for a sound system.
Actors Naseeruddin Shah and Shabana Azmi, filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj, singer-composer Vishal Dadlani and Tushar Gandhi, great-grandson of Mahatma Gandhi, were among those present at the Mumbai demonstration.
The BJP held a counter-protest in Mumbai’s Fort area, while protests over the SIR process were also reported in Jaipur and Ahmedabad.
