India protests: New 'cockroach' movement leader named
Indian police detained the head of the satirical "cockroach" online movement on Saturday, the group said, ahead of a major protest against the Election Commission that prompted strict security measures. "They seem to have seen that coming," notes France 24's Andrew Hilliar. In a prerecorded video, Abhijeet Dipke, founder of the Cockroach Party, names an interim leader to take over.
Indian police detained over 2,000 protesters and the founder of the Cockroach youth movement in Delhi on Saturday. The movement had planned a rally demanding the resignation of India's Chief Election Commissioner, Gyanesh Kumar, over a revision of voter lists.
The protests were met with strict security measures, including the deployment of thousands of police and paramilitary personnel, suspension of mobile internet services in the central business district, and closure of dozens of metro stations and markets.
According to a prerecorded video, the founder of the Cockroach Party, Abhijeet Dipke, has named an interim leader to take over. Small protests also broke out in other parts of Delhi, including a popular crafts market and the memorial to Mahatma Gandhi.
Brief written by urgent.news from France 24, Jerusalem Post — 2 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
