The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), the Students’ Federation of India and the All India Students’ Federation called for peaceful protests nationwide, demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
At a joint press conference, CJP co‑convener Ashutosh Ranka said the conflict had begun and that the situation was being treated as a war. He accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah of shame, claiming they had turned a fight against the Election Commission into a fight against themselves.
Saurav Das, another CJP co‑convener, described the situation as an “open emergency‑like” state and alleged that the government was at war with its own citizens to protect Kumar. He questioned why Modi and Shah were safeguarding the CEC, noting pressure from the RSS and raising doubts about the 2024 election results in Varanasi and other BJP‑ruled states.
The leaders said they had been detained after being “kidnapped” from a flight by police, denied access to lawyers, and had their phones seized without a seizure memo. A Special Executive Magistrate court released them on a condition of no breach of peace for a year. Despite the release, Dipke and Ranka vowed to resume protests, accusing Modi, Shah and Kumar of disturbing peace.
