Police arrest thousands in protests against cancellation of voter registration cards in India

Prevented from grouping together, the protesters spread across the capital, New Delhi. They accuse the country's Electoral Commission of acting for political reasons and call for the department head to leave.

Last year, the commission carried out a review of voter registrations under the argument of updating the records. The process led to the cancellation of around 130 million voter registration cards.

Several opposition groups accuse the commission of having annulled valid registrations. And they claim that the measure would benefit the ruling party, Narendra Modi's BJP, which has been in power for 12 years. The Electoral Commission denies irregularities.

The Indian police repressed the demonstrations, led by the "Party of Cockroaches". The movement was created by young people and got its name after government members called the country's unemployed people cockroaches at the beginning of the year.

The same group took to the streets of India in June to call for changes in the education system and denounce fraud in the most competitive entrance exam in the country. At the time, the Minister of Education resigned from his position. Now, the Cockroach Party wants an investigation into the Electoral Commission.

The group stated that the movement's founder and two other leaders were detained upon landing this Saturday at New Delhi airport.

In a video, Abhijeet Dipke is seen being escorted out of a plane. He shouted that he was not afraid of the government.

During the day, police arrested thousands of people in the capital and Mumbai, according to the Reuters news agency and the Indian press.

"We are not here against a specific politician or party. But against wrong measures. Our right to vote was violated", declared a woman, moments before being arrested.