Delhi police detain hundreds as restrictions block voter-roll protest

Delhi police detained Cockroach Janta Party leaders and hundreds of supporters on October 10 ahead of a planned rally at Jantar Mantar against voter-list revision, Deutsche Welle reported. Train cancellations, Metro restrictions and a mobile internet suspension also disrupted access to central Delhi as organisers urged supporters to continue demonstrating.

The rally sought the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and had not received police permission. Police cited safety, traffic and the rights of other residents in explaining the restrictions. The protesters’ objections to voter-list revision do not themselves establish electoral misconduct.

CJP names replacement leader after detentions

CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke was detained aboard his aircraft after arriving from Mumbai on Saturday morning, according to DW. Leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka were also detained. DW described demonstrators being removed from the protest area, placed on buses and taken to detention facilities.

The exact number detained remained unclear. DW put the scale in the hundreds, drawing on police and media reports, but that figure was neither a final verified tally nor a count of people formally charged. There was no comprehensive account of detainees’ release times.

DW’s reporting included interviews with demonstrators still trying to reach or remain near the protest. “We have been playing a game of cat and mouse with the police, trying to stop them from picking us up,” a protester identified as Jasmine told the broadcaster. Another described retreating when police advanced and returning when they withdrew.

Train cancellations and Metro closures affect Delhi travel

The Indian Express reported at least 245 train cancellations affecting services linked to New Delhi and Hazrat Nizamuddin stations. Northern Railway cited anticipated road congestion around the stations. The disruption therefore extended beyond those intending to attend the rally to travellers using two major railway terminals.

The newspaper reported a revised list of 45 Metro stations with closures scheduled from 9 p.m. on October 9 until 6 p.m. on October 10. That replaced an initial police request covering 57 stations. The announced schedule does not establish that every affected station remained closed throughout that period.

A police notification provided for mobile internet to be suspended within four kilometres of the Janpath–Kartavya Path crossing from 10 p.m. on October 9 until 10 p.m. on October 10, The Indian Express reported. All these restriction times are local Indian Standard Time.

The effects also reached businesses, education and courts. Connaught Place traders advised businesses to close on Saturday, some educational institutions announced online classes, and two court complexes planned virtual proceedings, according to the newspaper. Those announcements describe precautions and arrangements, rather than a verified account of every institution’s operations.

Police cite safety and earlier crowd-control failures

DW reported 43,000 police and security personnel deployed across Delhi on Saturday. The Indian Express had described at least 30,000 on Friday evening. Those figures concern different reporting moments and should not be read as directly comparable audited totals.

In its account of the preparations, The Indian Express reported that officer Sachin Sharma told CJP leader Das that permission for a protest must account for other residents’ rights, traffic disruption and safety concerns. Officers described 37 designated blocking points intended to prevent protesters reaching central Delhi.

Police officers also told the newspaper that failures to estimate crowds and coordinate deployments during CJP’s July 20 march had informed the new arrangements. Their explanation placed the operation in the context of an earlier mobilisation, while demonstrators interviewed by DW questioned the restrictions on protesting against the government.

Journalists report detention as questions remain

According to DW’s live coverage, Scroll and Newslaundry said their journalists were briefly detained while reporting on the protest and later released. Newslaundry said reporters’ phones were seized; other reports alleged physical assault. These remain attributed accounts rather than established findings.

DW reported that the Committee to Protect Journalists called for detained media workers to be released, equipment returned and reports of physical abuse investigated. CJP separately alleged that its leaders were held at an undisclosed location without lawyers or outside contact; that allegation was not independently established in the reporting.

At DW’s reporting cutoff, organisers still intended to continue under Shinde. The reports did not establish the final turnout, restoration of every restricted service or any resulting change to election administration. They also did not establish a direct Election Commission response to the protesters’ substantive demands.