Hundreds Detained as Gen-Z-Led Protest Movement Rallies in Delhi Over Electoral Reforms

Hundreds of protesters were detained in Delhi during a demonstration by the Gen-Z-led Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) demanding electoral reforms.

The group’s founder, Abhijeet Dipke, who launched the movement in May following a controversial remark by India’s Chief Justice comparing unemployed youth to “cockroaches,” was arrested along with other key leaders shortly after arriving in the national capital.

Security forces deployed tens of thousands of personnel and erected barricades ahead of the protest, yet the CJP vowed to proceed with their demonstration.

Delhi Police declined to confirm details of the arrests but confirmed that permission for the rally at Jantar Mantar—a prominent protest site—had been denied.

The unregistered group is pressing for sweeping changes to India’s electoral framework, coinciding with upcoming state elections that are seen as a test for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government.

The CJP has called for the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, accusing him of manipulating voter lists—an allegation the Election Commission has firmly rejected.

Under Kumar’s tenure, the Election Commission has embarked on an extensive nationwide drive to purge electoral rolls of deceased, duplicate, or ineligible voters. However, the initiative has sparked widespread criticism across several states, with hundreds of thousands claiming they were incorrectly removed from voting rolls.

The CJP, alongside opposition parties, alleges that Kumar is deliberately skewing the process to benefit Prime Minister Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)—a claim both the Election Commission and the BJP have categorically denied.

Before his detention in Delhi, Dipke warned: “If you believe you can silence us through threats of arrest or intimidation, you are gravely mistaken.”

Dipke and two other CJP leaders—Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka—were detained mid-flight from Mumbai on Saturday, according to the group, which stated that the leaders were taken to an undisclosed location. Delhi Police have not commented on their whereabouts.

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