'We Will Build Our Own Jantar Mantar'
India’s Cockroach movement is now targeting corruption in the country’s electoral commission. It may delegitimise Modi in the process.
TL;DR
- Protests have resurfaced in Delhi targeting corruption within India's Electoral Commission and the removal of millions of voters from lists.
- The youth-led movement, building on previous protests against exam leaks, now aims to remove the chief election commissioner.
- Activists and students are facing a significant police crackdown, including mass arrests, barricades, and detentions, with reports of brutality.
- Demands include the removal and arrest of the chief election commissioner for alleged partiality and manipulation of voter lists, and a halt to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process.
- Opposition parties, including the Congress and Samajwadi Party, have joined the protests, supporting the demand for action from the Supreme Court.
- The movement highlights a growing disillusionment with the Modi government, perceived as insensitive and curtailing people's movements.