India: Opposition Protest in New Delhi, Demanding Election Commissioner's Resignation
Al Jazeera Staff
India's opposition parties marched in New Delhi to demand the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over controversial voter roll revisions. Thousands of security forces were deployed, metro stations closed, and mass arrests of protesters and journalists reported.
Indian authorities shut down half a dozen metro stations in Delhi and warned of traffic disruptions as opposition parties prepared to march to the Supreme Court to protest controversial voter roll revisions, disrupting the capital New Delhi.
Thousands of police and security personnel were deployed across central New Delhi for a third consecutive day, erecting sturdy metal barricades and closing key metro stations ahead of the march led by Rahul Gandhi, the opposition leader in the Lok Sabha (lower house).
Opposition parties and supporters of the youth-led Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) movement have taken to the streets almost daily this month, demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar on allegations that the voter roll revisions benefit Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Over the weekend, police arrested thousands of protesters as supporters of the youth-led movement attempted to hold a march but were blocked by security forces.
The Election Commission of India (ECI), which oversees elections in the world's most populous nation, has denied any wrongdoing. Opposition figures accuse the government of suppressing dissent through mass arrests.
John Brittas, a member of parliament from the Communist Party of India (Marxist), said police "manhandled, dragged and assaulted" him during Sunday's protests. "This is not just an attack on one MP. It is an attack on democratic freedoms and the rule of law," he said.
Police did not answer questions about the arrests or their actions at a Sunday press conference. Several journalists covering the protests also said they were detained despite showing clear press credentials.
International NGO Reporters Without Borders said at least 16 journalists were "brutally" arrested while covering the weekend protests. "Reporting on events of public interest is not a crime. It is their job. The police's actions against the press are unacceptable," the organization stated.
Gandhi, leader of the Congress party, urged supporters to join Monday's march to the Supreme Court to pressure Kumar to resign. "Bring as many police as you like – 10,000, 20,000, 40,000, keep going. Call as many BJP-RSS henchmen as you need," he wrote on X, targeting Home Minister Amit Shah. "We are not people who scare easily. We are not people who back down. This fight will not stop now!"
Leaders of the youth-led CJP movement, with millions of social media followers, also vowed to continue protesting until Kumar resigns.
The protests have become one of the biggest political challenges to Modi in his 12 years in power, bringing together opposition parties, student groups and activists angered by the voter roll revisions. According to media reports, the revisions have led to more than 133 million names being removed from voter rolls. Critics say minority groups, especially Muslims, are disproportionately affected. The ECI insists the move aims to remove duplicates, deceased individuals and fraud.
