Delhi Protest Crackdown: CJP Leaders Detained From Plane, Journalists Held

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By TRH News Desk

CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke, two other leaders detained on landing at Delhi airport as capital national witnesses severe movement restrictions ahead of protest against CEC

New Delhi, October 10, 2026 — Delhi Police detained Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke and two other leaders inside an aircraft at Indira Gandhi International Airport on Saturday. Authorities also imposed sweeping restrictions across the capital to stop a planned protest demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

Dipke, Saurav Daas and Ashutosh Ranka were detained as a preventive measure after police personnel entered their flight from Mumbai shortly after it landed. Video footage showed Dipke telling officers “I have come here to be arrested; arrest me.” The party described the action as a pre-planned attempt to cripple its leadership before the demonstration could begin.

Authorities had denied permission for the event, citing short notice and concerns over compliance with directions during an earlier demonstration, and had asked the organisers to call it off. Dhruv Rathee and lawyer Ratna Singh were also held. Reports on Saturday indicated that more than 200 people, including CJP activists and other participants, had been detained in connection with the protest.

Media personnel covering the developments were also reportedly detained, and lawyers demonstrating near the Supreme Court were picked up, according to reports. The detentions prompted concerns about the scope of the restrictions and their implications for the right to report and protest.

Central Delhi was placed under heavy security, with barricades, vehicle checks, large police deployments and traffic diversions. The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation had announced the closure of 57 stations from Friday night. Trains were cancelled or rescheduled, and mobile internet was suspended in parts of the central administrative district. Together, the measures made it considerably harder to reach Jantar Mantar, the intended protest venue.

The Supreme Court addressed the arrangements a day earlier. A bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant asked the Centre to ensure there was no complete stoppage of metro and train services and to allow them to run in a regulated manner.

The CJP protest was directed against Kumar and the contentious revision of electoral rolls. Critics allege the exercise risks excluding legitimate voters and could undermine confidence in the electoral process. The Election Commission maintains the revision is meant to identify duplicate and ineligible entries and says voters whose names are wrongly removed can seek re-enrolment. The allegations of political manipulation remain contested.