Mumbai: Despite police denying permission, thousands of young men and women gathered Friday for the Cockroach Janta Party’s (CJP) protest at Shivaji Park here demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
While police and security forces were deployed in the central Mumbai area in large numbers and entry routes from the nearby Dadar railway station were barricaded, protesters managed to reach the ground, famous for landmark political rallies.
They were carrying the tricolour and placards with messages such as Gyanu, Tujha Democracy Var Bharosa Nay Kay (Gyanesh, don’t you trust democracy), Gyanesh BRO, JUST RESIGN and Gaddaar Gyaanu Must Go. Activists from groups such as the Students’ Federation of India (SFI) and All India Students’ Federation (AISF) were present, so also were veteran actors Shabana Azmi and Naseeruddin Shah and singer Vishal Dadlani.
Activist Tushar Gandhi, Mahatma Gandhi’s great-grandson, was also present.
Addressing the protesters, CJP leader Abhijeet Dipke said the Narendra Modi-led central government was so incompetent that they had to launch another protest within two months of the Jantar Mantar agitation over the NEET leak issue.
He also dared Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to send the protesters to jail.
The Shiv Sena (UBT) and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), which enjoy significant support in the Dadar area, have extended support to the CJP’s agitation.
Some residents of the area voiced opposition to the protest taking place in their neighbourhood.
Police officials said they were closely monitoring the situation to maintain law and order and ensure that traffic remains unaffected.
Earlier in the day, Dipke paid floral tributes to the statue of Mahatma Gandhi in south Mumbai to mark the birth anniversary of the father of the nation.
The CJP has demanded transparency in the appointment of the CEC and called for freezing of the 2025 voter list, saying it should not be tampered with further.
The CJP announced its protest demanding CEC Kumar’s resignation after recent media reports found that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had recorded objections on at least 14 occasions over 10 months to decisions and orders related to the Special Intensive Revision of the electoral rolls, some of which they said were issued without their knowledge.
The Election Commission later clarified that the three-member commission took all decisions, including those relating to the SIR, unanimously.
