India arrests 'cockroach movement' founder Abhijeet Dipke after Delhi rally crackdown

Indian police have arrested Abhijeet Dipke, founder of the youth-led Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), after he was detained on Friday ahead of a Delhi rally that drew hundreds of protesters waving the national flag and demanding the resignation of India’s election chief.

Dipke was arrested on Saturday to prevent a breach of the peace and will be called before a court, broadcasters NDTV and India Today reported, according to Reuters. The Financial Express reported he will appear before a Special Executive Magistrate on Saturday. Delhi police did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Dipke was detained on Friday as he stepped out of a house in central Delhi, with police hauling him into a car after a brief argument, witnesses told Reuters. Senior police officer Sachin Sharma said Dipke was in preventive detention. Student activist Neha Bora was also detained on Friday but released on Saturday, posting “I have been released!” on X.

The arrests come amid a police crackdown after near-daily October protests demanding Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation over a revision of voter lists that critics say favours Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party. Friday’s protest was called in support of two CJP leaders jailed this week for five days for demonstrating at a banned protest site.

More than 130 million voters were deleted during the revision, protesters say. The Election Commission denies favouring any party and says wrongly deleted voters can re-enrol; the BJP accuses rivals of trying to undermine democracy.