Delhi has effectively been turned into a security fortress ahead of the Cockroach Janta Party’s planned “Jantar Mantar 2.0” demonstration demanding Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation. After denying permission for the protest, Delhi Police deployed over 23,000 security personnel, closed more than 50 Metro stations, blocked mobile internet services within a four-kilometre radius of key central zones and imposed sweeping transit restrictions.
Preventive detentions have crossed 1,500. State police, acting on intelligence directives and border orders, detained over 1,000 supporters during overnight operations and railway sweeps on Friday, while more than 500 others attempting to breach security cordons or mobilise towards Delhi were picked up on Saturday. Those taken into custody include YouTuber Dhruv Rathee, detained by a joint police team from his Gurugram residence this morning, along with student leaders and regional activists. CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke, who criticised the security lockdown as a sign of government panic, has arrived in Delhi.
The Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) has directed all state and Union Territory administrations to treat public order as a “non-negotiable constitutional imperative”. It instructed state police to immediately implement preventive containment measures to stop CJP supporters and student groups from boarding trains or travelling to Delhi, and mandated real-time intelligence sharing between regional transit authorities and Delhi Police. The directive cited the group’s past record of public disruption to justify proactive state-level intervention.
The sweeping crackdown against the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) has widened to target key young professionals and academics within the organization. The Delhi Police have detained CJP’s Policy Lead, Mehr Pasricha, a Harvard University graduate who had recently returned to India to engage in public service.
Condemning the arrest on X, the official CJP handle wrote,
"CJP’s Policy Lead, @mehrpasr, someone who returned to India after studying from Harvard University so she could serve her country, has been detained by the Delhi Police. @narendramodi India’s youth don’t deserve to be treated like this, we don’t deserve your dictatorship!"
Heavy traffic jams were reported in several parts of Central Delhi on Saturday amid the security forces' deployment to thwart the Cockroach Janta Party's protest against the CEC at Jantar Mantar.
Checks at several key stretches leading to the protest site led to congestion and slowed down the movement of vehicles.
Barricades and heightened surveillance also added to the bumper-to-bumper traffic across central Delhi.
(PTI)
The Delhi Police have escalated their massive preemptive crackdown by intercepting and detaining Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke alongside key leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka. According to updates by the party on X, the CJP leaders were taken into custody by security forces immediately as their flight landed at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGI Airport) in New Delhi.
Delhi Police personnel entered the aircraft that was carrying Dipke.
BJP national president Nitin Nabin accused the opposition of using “falsehoods” in the name of the Constitution to challenge democracy, saying repeated electoral defeats had left it desperate. He warned that the BJP and “patriotic citizens” would give a “fitting and stern response” to such attempts.
Nabin also said the Union government would deal strictly with attempts to incite tension, while BJP workers would counter them on the ground. He said the party remained committed to the country’s development under Prime Minister Narendra Modi and to realising the vision of a “Viksit Bharat”, while standing firm against forces, domestic or foreign, that sought to disrupt peace.
The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) on Saturday issued a 12-point advisory for participants in its “Jantar Mantar 2.0” protest, urging them to maintain peace, avoid violence and vandalism, refrain from spreading unverified claims and follow lawful police instructions. The guidelines warn against attempts to breach barricades, carrying objects that could be used to injure people, hate speech and provocation. Protesters have been asked to keep emergency routes clear, document incidents only when safe, move away from confrontations and help vulnerable people reach safety. If detained, they should ask for the grounds and seek legal assistance, the CJP said.
The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) on Saturday alleged that police had detained its legal team head, Ratna Singh, and three other lawyers without stating the grounds for their detention. In a video released by the outfit, Singh said police had visited her house in the morning but had no official notice when asked for one, telling her they had “orders from above”.
She alleged that she was being illegally detained on the road, as several police personnel surrounded the car she was in.
Delhi Police has detained over 600 people with criminal records across all 15 districts of the national capital as a preventive measure ahead of the Cockroach Janta Party’s (CJP) proposed protest at Jantar Mantar against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, police sources said. Around 200 protesters attempting to reach the protest site were also detained in the New Delhi area on Friday. Police are monitoring movement using drones and have intensified surveillance outside the residences of people suspected of mobilising crowds.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Saturday said Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and the Modi government would go, after which the “repair of democracy” would begin. In a post in Hindi on X, he wrote: “Gyanesh Kumar will go. This government will go. Then the repair of democracy will begin.” He also shared a video of his address to INDIA bloc MPs at the Central Hall of Parliament.
On Friday, Gandhi had said the problem went beyond Kumar and required the termination of the current government. He told INDIA bloc MPs at Samvidhan Sadan that opposition protests had shaken the government’s foundations and warned that it would fall if the opposition continued its push over the next three to four days. “This is something that is worth fighting for and dying for,” he said.
CPI(M) MP John Brittas criticised the heavy security deployment in Delhi ahead of the CJP protest, alleging that movement across the city had been restricted. He said he had been stopped at least six places and asked to show his identity cards to security personnel. Calling the situation undemocratic, Brittas warned the government that what he described as oppressive measures could trigger a wider agitation that would throw it “in the dustbin of history”.
Security forces have been heavily deployed at the Apsara Border ahead of the Cockroach Janta Party’s (CJP) protest, with drones, CCTV cameras and body cameras being used to monitor the situation.
Shahdara DCP Rajendra Prasad Meena said commercial vehicle movement was being regulated through timed entry and thorough checks. Additional police personnel have been deployed, patrolling has been intensified in sensitive areas, and authorities are coordinating with Uttar Pradesh Police, which has set up checkpoints on its side of the border. Meena urged people not to attempt to travel to the protest site, warning that legal action could follow.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Saturday accused the BJP-led central government of imposing a "black emergency" in the country, following the detention by the police of several protesters coming to Jantar Mantar to join the CJP protest.
AAP MLA Gopal Rai said the party shut down metro stations and cancelled trains only to protect one person.
"Instead of removing CEC Gyanesh Kumar, the Centre has declared a black emergency in the country. Today, to protect Kumar, you have turned Delhi into a cantonment. But remember this, it does not matter how much force you push in, this movement will not be suppressed," Rai told reporters.
AAP Delhi unit president Saurabh Bharadwaj said the protestors only want to raise their issues in a "non-violent" way, but heavy deployment of forces creates an environment of fear.
"You can not make Gen-Z keep quiet by force; these are our youth, talk to them, engage with them. BJP Govt wants to show that we are a scared country. We are not; we believe in non-violence and the Constitution of India," Bharadwaj said in a video message.
The Cockroach Janata Party is scheduled to protest at Jantar Mantar here on Saturday, demanding the resignation of Kumar for alleged "vote theft."
Delhi Metro closed 45 stations from 9 pm on Friday till 6 pm on Saturday for security reasons, an advisory said.
On Friday, AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal said he and his family will come to the CJP protest and urged the youths to join him.
(PTI)
Reacting to YouTuber Dhruv Rathee’s reported detention, the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) said the government was “terrified” of young people who questioned its actions and refused to remain silent.
Police maintain high security around Mohan Estate area ahead of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) protest today. Spike strips also installed here.
YouTuber Dhruv Rathee was detained by Delhi Police from his residence in Sector 56, Gurugram, PTI reported. Further details about the circumstances surrounding his detention were not immediately available.
founder Abhijeet Dipke accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah of using security deployments and transport restrictions to prevent people from joining the protest against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. Questioning the need to halt railway and metro services and deploy security forces from Jammu and Kashmir and Naxal-affected areas, Dipke said he was prepared to be detained or arrested, even under the UAPA or NSA, but would continue fighting for free and fair elections and democracy.
Dipke is currently travelling to Delhi, he is expected to reach by 10 am.
Security was tightened across central Delhi on Saturday ahead of the Cockroach Janta Party's (CJP) protest demanding Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar's resignation over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Delhi Police, BSF and Rapid Action Force (RAF) personnel were deployed in large numbers around Jantar Mantar, Parliament Street Police Station and NDMC Palika Kendra. Multi-layered barricades blocked key roads, including Sansad Marg towards Connaught Place and Tolstoy Road, while Parliament Street and Ashoka Road witnessed heavy congestion.
Several Delhi Police personnel wore body cameras amid allegations of police excesses during the previous protest. The all-women Pink Force and other female security personnel were stationed at several locations, while police personnel carried lathis and protective gear.
Loudspeakers repeatedly announced prohibitory orders under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS). Passersby were asked to show identity cards, and people attempting to reach the restricted area were asked to return. Private security guards in nearby buildings were also briefed on crowd management.
Delhi Police on Friday detained around 150 protesters attempting to reach Jantar Mantar for the proposed Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) demonstration demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged voter-list manipulation.
Police sources said drones were being used to monitor the movement of people attempting to reach the protest site. In a separate preventive measure, more than 600 people with criminal records were detained across all 15 districts of the national capital to prevent any law-and-order situation during the proposed demonstration, the sources said.
Police are also keeping a close watch on individuals suspected of mobilising crowds or encouraging participation in the protest, with surveillance intensified outside their residences. Personnel have been deployed at strategic locations, particularly along routes leading to Jantar Mantar and other sensitive areas.