Mumbai, October 2: Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) leader Abhijeet Dipke, addressing a protest against the Election Commission and alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise, said a large number of people would join the agitation from across the country.
“So many people will arrive that your barricades won’t be enough!” Dipke said while addressing the gathering.
The protest in Mumbai was held amid growing opposition to Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and allegations concerning the SIR exercise. Earlier, CJP spokesperson Saurav Das had accused Kumar of being a “traitor” and the “real anti-national”, while claiming that the Mumbai protest would receive support from people across the country.
In Delhi, where a separate protest was held near Jantar Mantar against Kumar, Dipke alleged that Delhi Police DCP Sachin Sharma was “Amit Shah’s favourite”. Referring to claims made by some police officers, Dipke said, “Some police officers were telling me that this Sachin Sharma is a Sanghi. He is Amit Shah’s favourite. So I want to tell Sachin Sharma: if you are a Sanghi, wear khaki shorts (RSS uniform), don’t wear the police uniform!”
Actor Shabana Azmi, who also addressed the gathering, said the right to vote was fundamental to democracy and questioned what citizens would do if their names were removed from electoral rolls.
“We will protest! This is our right, and today, look as far as your eyes can see—this is a victory of democracy,” Azmi said.
She said people had recognised their collective power and argued that citizens should not have to tolerate injustice. Referring to the Constitution, Azmi said it guaranteed citizens the right to vote.
The protests followed allegations of irregularities and objections reportedly raised by Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi, according to a report inThe Indian Express. The Election Commission of India, however, has clarified that decisions relating to the SIR exercise were taken unanimously.
Meanwhile, in Delhi, members of the Students’ Federation of India (SFI) and the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI), along with opposition leaders, staged a protest near Jantar Mantar demanding the removal of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
Several opposition leaders, including AAP MLA Saurabh Bhardwaj, were detained amid prohibitory restrictions imposed under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023. (ANI)
