Authorities impose security lockdown across central Delhi as youth group Cockroach Janta Party mobilizes at Jantar Mantar seeking Election Chief Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation
NEW DELHI — October 10, 2026 : Delhi Police took prominent political commentator Dhruv Rathee and senior Left leaders into preventive custody on Saturday morning as thousands prepared to march toward Jantar Mantar to demand the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
Police picked up Rathee from his Gurugram residence around 7:45 a.m., according to representatives of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), the youth-led political group spearheading the agitation. Senior Communist Party of India (Marxist) leaders, including Politburo member M.A. Baby and Kerala state secretary M.V. Govindan, were also intercepted and detained as they attempted to join the demonstration.
Authorities have surrounded the capital’s central district with over 20,000 security personnel, declaring the 1.5-kilometer corridor spanning Jantar Mantar, Janpath, and the Election Commission headquarters a high-security buffer zone. Officials denied clearance for the protest march, citing potential disruptions to public order, and invoked Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) to prohibit public gatherings.
The Cockroach Janta Party, founded by activist Abhijeet Dipke, organized the “Jantar Mantar 2.0” demonstration following nationwide friction between opposition factions and the Election Commission of India. The movement demands Kumar’s resignation over alleged unilateral voter-roll revisions and software modifications, issues that drew documented internal dissent from fellow Election Commissioners.
“Jantar Mantar belongs to the citizens of this country,” Dipke stated before departing for the capital, asserting that demonstrations would proceed regardless of police barricades or detentions. Security agencies have heightened surveillance around Dipke, with officials signaling that his arrest remains imminent if he enters restricted zones.
The administrative lockdown caused widespread disruption across the capital. Police and transport authorities shut entry and exit gates at dozens of Delhi Metro stations across central corridors, cancelled or diverted passenger trains, and suspended mobile internet services within a four-kilometer radius encompassing Janpath and Kartavya Path.
The Supreme Court examined the sweeping travel restrictions late Friday, directing transport agencies to maintain regulated connectivity to prevent extreme public hardship.
Left student and youth bodies joined the call alongside broader INDIA opposition bloc leaders, several of whom took part in a parallel march toward Rajghat. Senior leaders from Kerala, present in Delhi for a central committee session, mobilized to support the youth demonstrators. Union ministers have dismissed the resignation demands as baseless, confirming that the central government has reinforced security for Chief Election Commissioner Kumar with additional Z-plus deployments.
