The Cockroach Janta Party has announced that they will launch the “Jail Bharo Andolan” protest on October 2 at Shivahi Park, Mumbai. The announcement comes a day after the group said that they would launch the movement if the police did not grant permission for their initial protest.
On Sunday, CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke took to X to say, “Mumbai Police has also denied permission for our protest on 2nd October. Such tactics to suppress citizens’ voices are unacceptable. If we are denied the right to protest, CJP will launch a Jail Bharo Andolan in Mumbai on Gandhi Jayanti.”
On Monday, Dipke posted that the agitation would take place at Shivaji Park at 4 pm and added #SaveDemocracy.
The group said that the protest will be held if the Chief Election Commissioner, Gyanesh Kumar, does not resign by September 26.
The CJP accused the CEC of influencing the democratic process and said that he posed a major threat to the democracy.
Activist Sonam Wangchuk also expressed his support for the protest howver said that he would not be physically present.
The agitation comes amid a row this week over the Election Commission. An Indian Express report revealed that Election Commissioners SS Sandhu and Vivek Joshi objected at least 14 times on record to decisions concerning voter registration, deletion and restoration of names and the SIR of electoral rolls.
"After becoming Chief Election Commissioner, the government is deciding who will be allowed to vote and who will not. Can such a system be called democracy?" Dipke said.,
The protest also comes amid tensions in Assam between the group and authorities. CJP co-convenor Ashutosh Ranka and their volunteers were detained by the police ahead of their meeting without being given a reason.
They were later released after outrage. Ranka had alleged that the Chief Minister of Assam, Himanta Biswa Sharma, was “afraid of being exposed.”
