Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) leaders on Sunday vowed to continue protests against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, even as around 200 people were detained while protests were held at several places in the New Delhi area that remained under a security chokehold.
The party also urged political parties across the ideological spectrum to unite on the issue.
CJP leaders Abhijeet Dipke, Ashutosh Ranka and Saurav Das made the remarks after being released from preventive custody. They alleged that their detention was illegal and said the agitation would be expanded beyond Delhi.
“Protests will happen, not just in Delhi but the whole country till we get accountability,” Das said at a press conference.
“Irrespective of ideology, all political parties should unite on the issue of SIR. If the right to vote is taken away, it's not good for any party,” he added.
Das alleged that the government had turned the state against its own citizens and said the authorities could have invited a delegation for talks instead of restricting protesters seeking to demonstrate at a designated site.
He claimed that Delhi Police officials took away their phones during their detention without issuing any seizure memo, raising concerns that the devices may have been hacked or cloned.
"We suspect that, as alleged in similar cases involving activists in the past, their phones could have been hacked or cloned to plant documents or other material that might later be used as evidence against us," he said during the press conference.
Referring to the condition imposed on their release, Das said that they had been told there should be no breach of peace for one year.
"The breach of peace has been caused by Narendra Modi, Amit Shah and Gyanesh Kumar," the CJP leader added.
Ranka said the protest would continue until Kumar resigned, arguing that demonstrations at designated sites did not amount to a breach of peace.
The three leaders were released by a Special Executive Magistrate Court after furnishing a surety bond of Rs 50,000 each for maintaining peace and good behaviour for one year, Delhi Police said.
Their release came amid continued protests and heightened security in the national capital, a day after around 7,000 people were detained at multiple locations while attempting to reach Jantar Mantar for a demonstration against Kumar. Police said all those detained had since been released.
The Supreme Court on Sunday directed authorities to ensure that people assembling peacefully were not illegally detained. It also asked the Centre to ensure that Delhi Metro services operated normally and internet services remained uninterrupted, subject to law and order requirements.
The court further said lawyers, journalists and others should not be prevented from discharging their professional duties.
Meanwhile, the national capital is bracing for another mobilisation on Monday by the INDIA bloc over alleged irregularities in the voter roll revision.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge said he and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi had sought a meeting with Chief Justice of India Surya Kant between 4 pm and 5 pm to seek his intervention on the issue of “vote chori”.
Delhi Metro services resumed normal operations on Sunday, even as heavy barricading continued on key approach roads. Protesters gathered at several locations, raised slogans and were seen being taken away in police buses.
Delhi Police has registered 20 FIRs in connection with Saturday's protests, including cases involving alleged assaults on police personnel and obstruction of public servants. Four men claiming links to the Hindu Raksha Dal were arrested for allegedly assaulting students and manhandling women during the demonstration, officials said.
An unprecedented security clampdown and the detention of over 7,000 protesters, including CJP leader Abhijit Dipke and four former chief ministers, helped the government thwart a planned mass mobilisation at Jantar Mantar on Saturday to press for the resignation of CEC Gyanesh Kumar.
On Sunday, around 200 students and protesters were detained as they raised slogans and marched towards Jantar Mantar, with several seen being dragged into police buses, as the protest called by the CJP entered its second day amid heavy security deployment in New Delhi.
Members of several student organisations, including the Students' Federation of India (SFI), All India Students' Association (AISA) and Krantikari Yuva Sangathan (KYS), along with CJP supporters, were detained. CPI(M) Rajya Sabha MP John Brittas and AISA president Neha Bora were also among those detained.
In visuals circulating online, AISA president Neha Bora was seen running as security personnel pursued her before a few officers blocked her path from the front and caught hold of her.
Women police personnel were then seen grabbing her by the arms, while other security personnel held her arms and legs and dragged her away. Bora was also seen clinging to barricades as fellow protesters held on to her, attempting to prevent security personnel from taking her away.
(With inputs from PTI)