India’s ‘cockroach’ movement threatens protest if poll chief does not quit
The youth movement says it will protest if chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar does not resign within 48 hours, after a report said he was questioned over voter-list changes.
The Congress Party announced plans for nationwide protest marches against India's chief election commissioner, Gyanesh Kumar, unless he resigns within 48 hours. The demonstration, organized by the Cockroach Janta Party, will target state election offices across India on Friday. The protest is a response to reports that Kumar has been questioned by his deputies over changes to voter lists, which opposition parties claim have been manipulated to benefit Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party.
According to the Indian Express, two election commissioners raised concerns about the voter list updating process at least 14 times in the past 10 months. However, the Election Commission of India has denied these allegations, stating that disagreements among election commissioners are normal and that all actions taken are lawful. The commission did not respond to requests for further comment.
The Cockroach Janta Party, founded by Abhijeet Dipke, is a youth movement that gained prominence after successfully leading protests last July, which led to the resignation of Modi's education minister. The party spokesperson claimed that the opposition parties are launching a smear campaign against the election commission, as they regularly lose elections. The BJP defends the election panel's actions, asserting that it functions democratically and is not under any form of dictatorship.
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