Indian authorities clamp down as ‘cockroach’ movement launches new protests

What the report says

Indian authorities moved to contain fresh protests on Friday as the Gen Z-linked Cockroach Janta Party, student groups and opposition supporters gathered in New Delhi and Mumbai to demand the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. According to Al Jazeera’s report, police and paramilitary forces surrounded protest areas in the capital, detained arriving demonstrators and shut several metro stations near Jantar Mantar, a frequent protest site.

The reported crackdown followed warnings from the CJP that it would launch nationwide demonstrations unless the election chief stepped down amid a dispute over voter rolls. Al Jazeera said Delhi Police invoked a public-order restriction that limits large gatherings and protest activity, and by mid-afternoon more than 500 people had reportedly been arrested in New Delhi, including former Delhi Chief Minister Atishi Marlena and members of the Aam Aadmi Party and student organizations.

In Mumbai, protesters gathered at Shivaji Park under heavy police monitoring. The movement says it is responding to concerns over revisions to voter lists, registration rules and digital election systems, which critics argue may have led to the removal of eligible voters and could advantage Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party. The election commission has denied wrongdoing, saying the changes were meant to remove duplicate, deceased or ineligible names.

The “cockroach movement” began as online satire and has since grown into a broader youth-led protest wave. Its latest actions come as opposition parties also prepare to press for Kumar’s resignation, keeping scrutiny on India’s electoral process and the government’s handling of dissent.