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Abhijeet Dipke, the founder of India's "cockroach" movement, and a few others were detained in Delhi as police tried to stop a protest demanding the resignation of the country's election chief.

Hundreds had gathered in Connaught Place, one of the capital's busiest commercial districts, waving Indian flags and shouting slogans despite a heavy security presence.

Police sealed off Central Park, the planned site of the protest, and deployed thousands of police and paramilitary personnel to prevent the gathering.

The Gen Z-led Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) accuses India's Election Commission of manipulating voter lists to favour Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ruling BJP. Both deny the allegation.

The group has held a series of protests in Delhi in recent weeks, with police repeatedly detaining its leaders and supporters. Friday's demonstration unfolded under similarly heavy security presence, though the police response was more restrained than during last weekend's sweeping crackdown.

Hours before the protest, police went to the house where Dipke was staying. In an exchange broadcast live on Instagram, he challenged officers who had come to caution him against holding the march, asking whether waving the Indian flag was against the law.

Hours later, the BBC saw officers surround Dipke as he approached his car and force him into a police vehicle. Some supporters tried to stop it from leaving.

It was Dipke's second detention in less than a week. Last Saturday, police had boarded his plane shortly after it landed in Delhi to prevent him from reaching another demonstration. He was released the following day.

The movement's two other main leaders, Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, were also detained last weekend and later released. But on Wednesday, they were sent to jail for five days after returning to Jantar Mantar, a protest site near parliament that police had recently declared off-limits. Friday's march was partly intended to demand the release of Das and Ranka.

Dipke's detention means the movement's three main leaders are once again in custody.

The CJP said it had lost contact with him and accused police of taking him to an undisclosed location and denying him access to lawyers.

But they insist the arrests and detentions will not stop them. "They may detain three people, but how will they stop 30 tomorrow? How will they stop 300 leaders?" CJP spokesperson Mehr Pasricha told the BBC.

Police have not publicly confirmed the grounds for Dipke's detention or responded to the CJP's latest allegations.

Anish Gawande, the opposition politician who had been hosting Dipke, also questioned the police action.

"Detaining a lone man walking with the national flag in his hand is a bit of a joke," he said.

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At Connaught Place, the police presence dwarfed the protest itself.

Around 200-300 people initially gathered outside Central Park, which authorities had closed. Unable to enter, they walked around its perimeter, waving Indian flags and shouting slogans. More protesters arrived as the evening progressed.

Officers kept emerging from buses parked around the district. Journalists crowded the streets too, and together with police, they far outnumbered the demonstrators.

For much of the evening, police largely held back, with the BBC witnessing only a handful of detentions. But as darkness fell, officers began using force against some protesters.

The BBC saw some young demonstrators being pushed into a bus where women were already being held. Inside were around 50 female officers, far more than the number of detainees.

The BBC also saw two people being injured during the police action. One protester fell to the ground and appeared to have hurt their leg.

Among those detained was Neha Bora, a prominent leader of the left-wing All India Students' Association (AISA) who has emerged as one of the faces of the recent protests. She had also been detained during last weekend's crackdown.

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Barely five months old, the CJP began as an online campaign in May after India's chief justice likened some unemployed young people to cockroaches. Dipke embraced the insult and turned it into a rallying cry.

By July, the group had become a formidable force, drawing thousands of young people into protests over leaked exam papers. A march towards parliament in July descended into clashes with police, bringing the movement wider attention and intensifying pressure on the government. The unrest eventually forced the resignation of India's education minister.

The CJP has since turned its attention to India's electoral system, demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over a sweeping revision of voter lists known as the Special Intensive Revision (SIR).

Critics say the exercise risks removing legitimate voters from the rolls, potentially depriving them of the right to vote. The Election Commission says it is targeting ineligible, dead and duplicate voters and denies allegations that it is favouring the ruling BJP.

Last weekend, authorities imposed severe restrictions to stop CJP supporters from reaching a planned rally, sealing off roads, shutting metro stations and deploying thousands of security personnel across Delhi.

The BBC witnessed dozens of protesters being detained across the capital, including students and journalists.

The action drew criticism but police defended it as necessary to maintain public order and prevent unauthorised gatherings.

Dipke, Das and Ranka were released the following day after agreeing to maintain peace and good behaviour. But the dispute over where they could protest was only beginning.

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Police removed Jantar Mantar from Delhi's list of approved protest sites, naming three alternative venues.

Built in the 18th Century to study the stars, the observatory stands close to Parliament and has long been one of India's most recognisable stages for public dissent. The CJP accused authorities of trying to push demonstrations away from the seat of power.

On Tuesday, Das and Ranka returned to the restricted site with a handful of supporters, unfurling the Indian flag and shouting slogans against Kumar.

Police said some protesters had climbed over a locked gate and that the organisers had breached the conditions of their release. The following day, the two men were sent to jail for five days.

The arrests did little to deter the movement from announcing another demonstration.

In a video message on Thursday, Dipke urged supporters unable to travel to Delhi to raise the Indian flag in their own towns and cities. He also acknowledged the possibility of being arrested again.

"I also may be jailed after this, but I am not worried. Tricolour is my pride and I will raise it," he said.

By Friday morning, police had served him with a notice warning against holding the march without permission.

Authorities closed Central Park for two days, citing "administrative reasons", and offered to let a small group wave the national flag and sing the anthem at another location.

The CJP came up with a different plan. Supporters were told to enter Connaught Place in groups of fewer than five, unfurl the flag, take a photograph and leave.

"Waving the Tiranga is not a crime," the movement declared in a social media poster, using the Hindi name for India's tricolour. It urged supporters to share their photographs online.

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Opposition parties have also been holding protests against Kumar and the Election Commission.

Last week, Rahul Gandhi and other opposition lawmakers were detained while attempting to march to the commission's headquarters. They have also taken their concerns to President Droupadi Murmu and marched towards the Supreme Court.

Gandhi has condemned the arrests of CJP leaders and called for Jantar Mantar to be reopened to protesters, although the opposition and the youth-led movement have largely demonstrated separately.

Home Minister Amit Shah has accused the opposition of spreading falsehoods about the voter-list revision and defended the commission's independence.

For the CJP, the immediate question is how long it can sustain its protests with its three main leaders in custody.

Pasricha said the party had a team and a plan in place. "If the top three continue to stay behind bars, we will continue to protest peacefully," she said.

 

SOURCE/AUTHOR : BBC NEWS/Zoya Mateen, Azadeh Moshiri & Vikas PandeyBBC News, Delhi