'Cockroach' youth movement calls rally in support of detained leaders. Founder detained while trying to reach protest site. Civic authority closes venue for two days.
Reuters
New Delhi
Police detained India's 'cockroach' movement founder Abhijeet Dipke on Friday, live images from his group showed, ahead of a protest called by him in capital Delhi's central business district, the latest rally to demand the resignation of India's election chief.
The youth-led 'Cockroach Janta Party' (CJP), opposition groups, and student organisations have held almost daily protests this month demanding Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar's resignation over a revision of voter lists that critics say favours Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
More than 130 million voters were deleted during the revision but the Election Commission has denied favouring any party and said wrongly deleted voters can re-enrol. The BJP has accused rivals of trying to undermine democracy by wrongly questioning legitimate electoral processes.
Dipke called Friday's protest in support of two CJP leaders detained and sent to jail this week for five days for demonstrating at a protest site in violation of a ban.
The group and left-wing student organisations had urged supporters to gather at the Central Park in New Delhi's busy Connaught Place shopping and food district on Friday evening to wave and hoist the national flag.
The live video on CJP's Instagram handle showed Dipke coming out of a house and walking towards the street, where police officers stopped him and, after a brief argument, hauled him into a police car and drove away.
"We are detaining you right now," a police officer could be heard telling Dipke. "I have not broken any law right now...how can you detain me," Dipke asked the police officers as he was taken away.
There was no immediate comment from the police on the detention. Earlier on Friday, police met Dipke and warned him against going ahead with the protest.