AISA chief Neha Bora being detained by the police during a protest against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, demanding his resignation over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, at Mandi House, in New Delhi, on Friday. PTI
Tiranga march LIVE: Dipke, Neha Bora detained; flash protests in New Delhi
CPJ, other youth activists join flag march in Delhi demanding rollback of SIR, resignation of CEC Gyanesh Kumar
Tricolours in hand and raising slogans of “Jai Hind”, hundreds of supporters of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) and members of student organisations held a series of flash protests in central Delhi on Friday evening (October 16) after police denied permission for the party's “Lehra Do Tiranga” march at Connaught Place.
CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke and AISA president Neha Bora were among the around 150 protesters detained by Delhi Police. The detentions drew sharp attacks from the opposition, with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi backing the protesting students, while the BJP-led central government called the protest an attempt to bring about a regime change by "using" young people to spread "anarchy".
The protesters walked through the inner circle of Connaught Place, intermittently raising the slogan of 'Jai Hind' before dispersing and regrouping at different spots. Some also sang the national anthem.
Students and members of the All India Students' Association (AISA) protested at Mandi House, demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, rollback of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, and withdrawal of the 2023 Election Commissioner Appointment Act.
Minor altercations broke out between the protesters and police as the latter attempted to disperse the crowd.
Dipke and Bora were preventively detained by Delhi Police while on their way to participate in the protests, with the CJP leader headed to Connaught Place and the AISA chief to Mandi House.
While Dipke was picked up from his residence in Jhandewalan, Bora was detained at Mandi House. The detentions triggered scenes of jostling among crowds, camera crews, and security personnel.
Follow live updates here.
Live Updates
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AISA activist Neha Bora has also been detained. She had earlier posted a video saying “See you at Mandi House at 5pm”.
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