Three leaders of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), a youth-led political movement, were released on Sunday, 11 October. They had been detained a day earlier in Delhi, ahead of a planned protest at Jantar Mantar.

A court freed founder Abhijeet Dipke, Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka on the condition of “no breach of peace for one year,” according to the party’s legal director, Ratna Singh. Delhi Police confirmed the release and its conditions on X.

What Happened on Saturday

Leaders detained at the airport

According to the CJP, police boarded the leaders’ flight from Mumbai after it landed in Delhi on Saturday, 10 October, and took them into custody. The party released video that it says shows police on the aircraft.

The group had called supporters to Jantar Mantar for a second round of protests, which activists described as “Jantar Mantar 2.0.”

Crackdown across the city

Delhi Police said about 150 people were detained on Saturday morning, before the protest began. In a statement, police said the protesters had not obtained the required permission.

Later estimates were higher. An unnamed official said more than 2,000 people were detained, including several opposition lawmakers. Police said most of those held were released late Saturday.

Train services to the capital were reported cancelled, some metro stations closed and mobile internet suspended in parts of the city. The movement also alleged that supporters travelling to Delhi were stopped in several states. That claim could not be independently confirmed.

Release and Reaction

After his release, Dipke sharply criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi in a post on X. He also said the CJP “will neither back down nor be intimidated.”

The party had vowed to keep protesting on Sunday. With thousands of security personnel deployed and central Delhi sealed, turnout was reported to be small.

No comment from the Home Affairs Ministry on the detentions has been found.

Why the Protests Are Happening

The CJP and other groups are demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. They also want the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls suspended. Opposition parties and civil society groups have held protests in several cities over the past week.

Critics say the revision is politically motivated and removes eligible voters. The ruling BJP and the Election Commission deny this. In an earlier briefing in October 2025, the Chief Election Commissioner said the revision was required before every election.

In late September, the CJP had demanded his resignation and said it would begin nationwide protests from 2 October if he did not step down.

Background of the movement

The CJP began online in May 2026 as a satire of the political establishment. It later led protests over irregularities in medical entrance exams. Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigned on 25 July.

What Comes Next

The movement says it will continue its campaign. The Election Commission has not been found to have responded to the latest resignation demand. Authorities have not said whether the restrictions in Delhi will remain in place.

Details may change as the situation develops. Readers are advised to verify through official sources.

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Note for you to check: I read the category list live from the site’s homepage menu, which includes National News. I found no response from the Election Commission or the Home Ministry to this week’s demands. Detention figures differ (150 per Delhi Police versus more than 2,000 per an unnamed official), and the background on the movement’s founding and the minister’s resignation comes from a general reference page, so confirm it before publishing.