Mumbai, Oct 2: A large gathering of young protesters assembled at Mumbai’s Shivaji Park on Friday for a protest organised by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
Despite the intense heat and heavy police security, protesters gathered around the park carrying placards, posters and banners featuring satirical memes, film dialogues and slogans directed at the Chief Election Commissioner.
The protest also saw the participation of veteran actors Naseeruddin Shah and Shabana Azmi, filmmakers Vishal Bhardwaj and Hansal Mehta, singer and music director Vishal Dadlani, and Tushar Gandhi, the great-grandson of Mahatma Gandhi.
Protesters raised slogans and displayed messages including “Gyanu, Tujha Democracy Var Bharosa Nay Kay?”, “Gyanesh BRO, JUST RESIGN” and “Gaddaar Gyaanu Must Go”. Activists from organisations including the Student Federation of India (SFI) also joined the demonstration.
The protest featured several creative forms of expression. A student from Sion, Manish Mandal, wore jewellery made from Melody chocolate wrappers while carrying a banner featuring the words “Fraud detergent powder” in Devanagari script.
Groups affiliated with the All India Students’ Federation (AISF) from Pune used musical instruments to accompany slogans such as “Chale Jao”, “Vapas Do” and “Band Karo”.
Security tightened around Shivaji Park
Mumbai Police deployed additional personnel and erected barricades around Shivaji Park ahead of the protest. Vehicular movement near Sena Bhavan was also restricted.
The Government Railway Police (GRP) and Railway Protection Force (RPF) increased security at Dadar railway station to avoid disruption to commuters.
Although the protest was scheduled to begin at 4 pm, several CJP activists and other participants began arriving from early afternoon.
Protest linked to SIR controversy
The CJP announced the agitation demanding CEC Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation following media reports concerning the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
According to the reports cited by the protesters, Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had raised objections on at least 14 occasions over a period of 10 months regarding certain decisions and orders connected with the SIR process. The reports said some of these decisions were allegedly issued without their knowledge.
The Election Commission subsequently clarified that the three-member commission takes decisions collectively and said that decisions relating to the SIR were taken unanimously.
The Mumbai protest coincided with Mahatma Gandhi’s birth anniversary, with organisers using quotations on non-violence and simplicity and references to B.R. Ambedkar during the demonstration.
