While the reactions to the comprehensive changes made in the voter lists in India are growing, police intervention in the protests in the capital New Delhi continues.
Leading figures of the youth movement called "Cockroach Janta Party" (CJP), which has come to the fore with anti-government demonstrations in the country in recent months, were detained after they overcame police barricades to enter the protest area on Tuesday.
The demonstrators are demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, alleging that the adjustments in the voter lists were made in favor of the ruling People's Party of India (BJP).
According to CJP's statement, approximately 20 activists, including Ashutosh Ranka, Saurav Das and Ajinkya Shinde, leaders of the movement, entered the area of the historical Jantar Mantar observatory in New Delhi.
Demonstrators who broke through the police barricades around the area where protests have been held for many years in India, carried Indian flags and chanted slogans.
In the footage broadcast live by CJP, it was seen that approximately 12 activists entered the area by jumping over the doors and barricades, and were then detained by police teams.
The founder of the movement, Abhijeet Dipke, said in a statement on his social media account after the detentions: "You cannot declare resistance banned."
HISTORICAL PROTEST AREA HAS BEEN CLOSED
New Delhi police announced on Monday that Jantar Mantar, located in the capital's central business district, will no longer be used as an official demonstration area.
The police announced that three new areas were determined for the protests.
The decision came after a large-scale police intervention against demonstrations planned to be held over the weekend.
It was reported that thousands of people were detained during the protests of opposition parties and youth organizations, and CJP executives were among those detained.
On Monday, thousands of people attended the protest march led by opposition groups.
MORE THAN 130 MILLION VOTERS WERE REMOVED FROM THE LIST
At the center of the protests is the work of the Election Commission of India to reorganize the voter lists, which started last year.
Within the scope of the regulation in question, the names of more than 130 million people were removed from the voter lists.
According to the announced data, those removed from the list include 28 million people who lost their lives, 63 million voters who changed their residence, and 30 million people whose addresses could not be found.
Opposition parties argue that the regulations disproportionately affect Muslim voters and other minority groups, which could have consequences in favor of the BJP led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The Election Commission, on the other hand, rejects allegations that any political party was given an advantage. The commission states that voters whose names were deleted by mistake can re-register.
The BJP also accuses the opposition of trying to undermine trust in democratic institutions by targeting legitimate election processes.
The news published in the Indian press last month further fueled the discussions regarding the changes in the voter lists.
According to the Indian Express newspaper, two aides of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar have raised various concerns within the institution regarding the reorganization of voter lists, registration procedures and digital systems used.
Following the news in question, opposition parties and CJP increased their criticism of the transparency of the election process and demanded Kumar's resignation.
YOUTH MOVEMENT AGAINST MODI GOVERNMENT IS GROWING
CJP, which has come to the fore in Indian politics in recent months, has been organizing protests not only against the regulations regarding electoral lists, but also against problems in the education system, infrastructure of public schools and unemployment.
The movement, led by young people, has become one of the important social opposition movements faced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his more than 12-year rule.
The sit-in protests organized by the movement in Jantar Mantar this year, which lasted for weeks, resulted in the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan following the discussions regarding the leakage of exam questions.
With the latest protests, CJP's demands have gone beyond education and employment issues and focused on the functioning of the electoral system and the independence of democratic institutions.
