New Delhi, October 16,2026: Indian police detained Abhijeet Dipke, founder of the youth-led Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), on Friday ahead of a planned protest in central Delhi demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over a controversial revision of voter lists.
Live footage shared on the party’s Instagram account showed police officers stopping Dipke as he left a house. After a brief exchange, officers took him to a police vehicle and drove away.
“We are detaining you right now,” a police officer could be heard saying.
“I have not broken any law right now… how can you detain me?” Dipke responded.
The CJP, opposition groups and student organisations have staged near-daily demonstrations this month, alleging that the voter-list revision disproportionately affects minorities and benefits Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
More than 130 million voters were reportedly removed during the exercise. The Election Commission has denied favouring any political party, saying that voters wrongly removed from the lists can re-enrol. The BJP, meanwhile, has accused opposition parties of undermining democratic institutions by questioning legitimate electoral procedures.
Dipke had called Friday’s demonstration in support of two CJP leaders who were detained earlier this week and remanded in jail for five days after allegedly protesting in violation of a ban.
The party and left-wing student organisations had urged supporters to assemble at Central Park in Connaught Place, a busy commercial and shopping district, to wave and hoist the national flag.
However, municipal authorities closed the park for two days, citing administrative reasons. Delhi Police also prohibited public gatherings around Connaught Place, referring to public order and safety concerns.
Police said violations of the restrictions would invite legal action, while indicating that selected individuals could be permitted to assemble at a designated location.
Security was tightened across parts of the capital on Friday, with thousands of personnel deployed and yellow metal barricades installed at key intersections. Earlier this week, police also withdrew authorisation for Jantar Mantar as a designated protest site.
Dipke had said he would not be deterred by the possibility of arrest.
“Why are you so afraid of cockroaches?” he said, referring to the movement’s name.
“I want to tell Narendra Modi that we are not afraid… if waving the Indian national flag lands you in jail, we are ready,” he said on Thursday.
The demonstrations follow a large-scale voter-list revision overseen by Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. Critics argue that the removals have disenfranchised millions, with minorities, particularly Muslims, allegedly affected disproportionately.
Election authorities say the exercise was intended to remove duplicate, deceased and fraudulent entries from the electoral rolls.
Members of the BJP have also alleged that undocumented Muslim migrants from neighbouring Bangladesh have fraudulently entered India’s voter lists.
On Friday, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh rejected the opposition’s allegations, accusing opposition parties of attempting to undermine democratic institutions and create unrest.
“Their fight is not for electoral reform… not for Gyanesh Kumar, not for the bright future of the country’s youth,” Singh said at a news conference.
“Rather, this is their conspiracy to seize power by creating anarchy in the country.”
