Daijiworld Media Network - Mumbai
Mumbai, Oct 1: The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) has announced plans to expand its agitation against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar to Goa, Bengaluru, Kolkata and other parts of the country, with founder Abhijeet Dipke saying the protests will continue until Kumar resigns.
The announcement came a day before the CJP's planned “Jail Bharo Andolan” in Mumbai on October 2. Dipke and CJP chief spokesperson Saurav Das addressed a press conference at the Mumbai Press Club on Thursday, demanding Kumar's resignation and criminal action against him.
Dipke said protests would also be held in Goa, Karnataka, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand. He said that if Kumar does not resign, the CJP plans to hold a protest at Jantar Mantar in Delhi from the end of October. The CJP has also demanded that the appointment of the CEC be made through a more transparent process with civil society involvement.
The CJP's latest announcement follows its earlier decision to launch a nationwide agitation from Mumbai on October 2. The group had initially sought permission to hold a protest at Shivaji Park. Mumbai Police denied permission, citing a 2013 Bombay High Court order restricting the use of the ground to sports-related activities, along with concerns over traffic, noise and access to nearby hospitals.
Following the denial, Dipke announced the “Jail Bharo Andolan”, saying the organisation would proceed with the protest. The CJP later announced its “Mumbai Chalo” programme at Shivaji Park's Gate No. 6 at 4 pm on October 2.
The CJP's campaign is centred on allegations concerning the functioning of the Election Commission and the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. The controversy intensified after an Indian Express investigation reported that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had raised objections on at least 14 occasions over 10 months concerning decisions and orders related to voter registration, deletions and other electoral processes.
The Election Commission, however, has rejected the suggestion that the reported differences amounted to institutional dissent affecting its decisions. EC sources said individual views could differ, but all decisions of the three-member Commission, including those relating to SIR, were taken unanimously with the approval of the CEC and both Election Commissioners.
The controversy has also reached the courts. The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a petition challenging the functioning of the CEC and seeking to declare the nationwide SIR exercise illegal. The petition alleges that some decisions were taken without the concurrence of the other Election Commissioners; the Election Commission has disputed that interpretation.
Separately, a plea has been filed seeking prosecution of Kumar over alleged unilateral decision-making in the Election Commission, including issues concerning electoral-roll data and the SIR process. These remain allegations before the courts and have not been established as findings against Kumar.
The CJP has also demanded that the 2025 voter list be frozen and not subjected to further changes, according to reports quoting Dipke. The group has urged political parties to join the agitation but Dipke has said the CJP will not be part of INDIA bloc protests.
The Election Commission's current official directory lists Gyanesh Kumar as Chief Election Commissioner, with Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi as Election Commissioners.