Delhi Locked Down Under Heavy Security as 'Cockroach' Group Prepares Protest Demanding Election Commissioner's Resignation

Security tightened and Delhi sealed off as "Cockroach" group prepares to protest demanding the election commissioner's resignation

October 10

Local media report that authorities have sealed off entry and exit points in the capital Delhi and imposed exceptionally tight security after the "Cockroach" youth movement group announced plans to protest demanding the resignation of the election commissioner over a voter list issue that stripped voting rights from more than 130 million citizens in India.

As of the morning of October 10, nearly 1,000 protesters had been arrested, entry and exit gates at 57 metro stations were closed, and some long-distance train services were cancelled.

In addition, some schools in the city centre have been closed and switched to online teaching, while hotels and shops have had their opening permissions restricted, it is said.

Police have warned that the protest has not been permitted, and more than 7,000 personnel from the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), including from sensitive regions such as Jammu and Kashmir, have been urgently redeployed and stationed across the capital, it is said.

However, Indian Supreme Court Chief Justice Surya Kant has instructed the government not to completely shut down metro rail services but to operate them systematically so that ordinary people do not face difficulties in travelling.

"Cockroach" movement founder Abhijit Dipke, meanwhile, said that regardless of what happens, they will march and protest all the way to Jantar Mantar in Delhi, and criticised the government's lockdown measures as the behaviour of a leader who is afraid of his own people.

The opposition has also accused the ruling BJP party of amending voter lists to gain an advantage, but the election commission responded that it is still verifying the draft and that names can be resubmitted.

Ref & Photo: The Independent

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