Indian authorities detained thousands of demonstrators, including leaders of the Kukroch Janta Party, during protests that have been taking place across the country since early October over changes to the electoral rolls. Opposition groups have accused the measures of benefiting the Bharatiya Janata Party, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Barriers breached and arrests at Jantar Mantar
The arrests came after protesters breached security barriers around New Delhi’s historic Jantar Mantar observatory, one of the capital’s main protest sites. Participants chanted slogans calling for Kumar to leave before police intervened and detained activists who had reached the site.
A live broadcast posted by the Kukroch Janta Party showed about 12 activists breaching a gate and security barriers to reach the observatory, carrying the Indian flag and chanting protest slogans, before police arrested them. Thousands of protesters took part in a march organised by opposition groups on Monday after security measures prevented the party from holding a demonstration it had planned for the beginning of the week.
Protest sites changed as demonstrations continue
The measures resulted in thousands of demonstrators being detained, including party leaders. New Delhi police announced on Monday that Jantar Mantar would no longer be an officially designated protest site, with three alternative locations allocated for demonstrations in the capital. Opposition groups and supporters of the Kukroch Janta Party have held near-daily protests since the beginning of October over changes to the voter registers.
Critics say the changes give an advantage to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party. The Election Commission of India, meanwhile, denied favouring any political party and said voters whose names had been removed by mistake could register again.
The Bharatiya Janata Party accused opposition parties of attempting to undermine democracy by unjustifiably questioning the integrity of the electoral process.
