The Cockroach Janta Party has called on all youth, student organisations and citizens across the country to reach Delhi on October 10 for a protest at Jantar Mantar demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. The call comes as Delhi Police denied permission for the gathering, despite the CJP formally submitting safety undertakings and traffic management requests on Wednesday.
CJP co-convenor Saurav Das said the October 10 protest would be led by young people and student groups and would focus on the Election Commission’s handling of electoral rolls and the Special Intensive Revision exercise. We informed them that the ‘Cockroach Janta Party’ and the youth of the entire nation, all these ‘cockroaches’, are set to gather at Jantar Mantar on October 10. Delhi Police subsequently refused permission for the October 10 gathering. Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita is also in force in New Delhi, restricting large assemblies in the area. On October 5, a three-judge bench issued notices to the Centre, the Election Commission, Kumar and Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi on petitions alleging that some poll-panel decisions were taken without collective approval. The petitions followed an Indian Express investigation that reported Sandhu and Joshi had recorded objections at least 14 times over 10 months on matters involving voter registration, deletion of names, Form 6 and access to electoral-roll systems.
He said the organisers had also completed the required formalities and submitted an undertaking. We have provided this formal intimation,” Das said. Das objected to the use of the word “permission” for a public protest and argued that the police should handle security, law and order and traffic arrangements. “We have come here to provide intimation; there is no scope for rejection or acceptance, we have simply informed you,” he said. CJP has chosen “Chalo Delhi” as its mobilisation call and is asking students, youth organisations and other citizens to join the demonstration. “I want to emphasise that this isn’t just a ‘Cockroach Janata Party’ movement or protest; this is a Gen Z protest, a protest by the youth,” Das said. CJP leaders have accused the Election Commission of “theft of votes” and “hijacking of elections” and alleged that young voters are being left out of electoral rolls. Responding to last month’s reports of disagreements inside the three-member poll body, the Commission said differing views were part of its decision-making process and that its final decisions were unanimous. The Election Commission said those exchanges formed part of its internal decision-making and maintained that the final decisions were unanimous.
“We reached the Parliament Street Police Station, and I handed them a formal letter. We asked them to maintain law and order, cooperate with us, and make necessary traffic arrangements. “We have submitted the formal notification and have received the acknowledgement copy from the Delhi Police. Based on our discussions, they also obtained an undertaking from us, and we completed all the required formalities for it. We hope the Delhi Police will cooperate,” he added. We want to say that everyone will have to unite and fight together. This fight is not going to be easy… This is not a one-day fight. This fight will continue for many days, and given the attitude of this government, we may have to face a lot of difficulties. The group has cited the SIR exercise and questions over voter registration and deletion while demanding Kumar’s resignation. The Election Commission has rejected claims that its SIR decisions were taken improperly. The dispute over the Election Commission’s functioning has also reached the Supreme Court. The court declined to suspend Kumar through an interim order.
Das went to Parliament Street Police Station on Wednesday and submitted a letter informing the police about the proposed protest. He also said, “All the youth, all student organisations and every citizen of this country are united in this fight, and we have gathered here today to send the same message.
