Hundreds of young people gathered at Shivaji Park in Mumbai on Friday for a rally organised by the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP), the outfit founded by Abhijeet Dipke, where attendees voiced demands that Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar resign over allegations that his behaviour undermines electoral integrity in the country.
Thousands of flag-bearing demonstrators, many of them young, converged on the ground in defiance of a police order withholding authorisation for the gathering, voicing chants directed at Kumar that included "Go Gyanu Go," "Gaddar Gyanu Must Go," and "Gyanu, It's Done Bro."
Held on Gandhi Jayanti, the demonstration served as a platform from which Dipke directed verbal criticism at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, and Kumar. Among those present at the demonstration were film performers Shabana Azmi and Naseeruddin Shah, with composer and recording artist Vishal Dadlani joining a broader gathering of public figures.
Speaking to those gathered, Dipke put forward the call for Kumar to step down, framing it as a matter of safeguarding democratic principles. Drawing on the independence leader's name, he put forward the view that Gandhi's place in the world had not diminished over time. Those who back him have pointed to his persona as a reflection of the country's broader character and values. Gandhi's legacy, observers note, endures in India through the continued engagement of younger generations with his principles.
Dipke described Gandhi, Ambedkar, and Nehru as embodying the nation's spirit, structural foundation, and intellectual character, respectively, and raised questions about efforts to draw equivalences between those historical figures and present-day political leaders. He added that individuals who shared the outlook of Nathuram Godse had come and gone throughout history without altering the trajectory shaped by Gandhian thought. He argued that the trio stood beyond the reach of any individual's claim to superiority, and that the nation's democratic foundations drew their strength from those who had fought for independence and drafted its constitution.
Dipke directed criticism at the Prime Minister, pointing to three policy episodes — demonetisation, the Covid-19 vaccination rollout, and voter registration procedures — as instances where citizens were made to wait in long lines, noting that bank queues formed across the country when cash was withdrawn from circulation. Vaccination lines formed as people sought their doses throughout the pandemic period. He noted that those individuals were subsequently required to line up at voter registration points.
Dipke also turned his remarks toward the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), arguing that followers of Gandhi's philosophy had faced greater persecution at the hands of its members than the Mahatma himself encountered during colonial rule.
Dipke addressed an account in which Fadnavis had reportedly told protesters they would be held for three days if the demonstration went ahead, asking directly whether that detention notice had genuinely come from him. The group called for a three-month detention period to be applied to them instead. Invoking the Chief Minister's own slogan — "Mi Punha Yein," or "I will return" — he told those assembled that his camp intended to adopt that same rallying phrase as its own.
Pointing to Maharashtra's heritage as one shaped by the teachings of Ambedkar, Mahatma Jyotirao Phule, and Rajarshi Shahu Maharaj, he contended that the Chief Minister had set aside that tradition through the notices directed at those who had gathered in protest, going on to pose a rhetorical question to fellow legislators about whether they would respond to such pressure by seeking the Chief Minister's favour. Dipke told those present that they were all welcome to be imprisoned if authorities wished, while also noting that the Chief Minister held a position of political uncertainty.
Heavy police and security presence took shape at Shivaji Park after the gathering was not authorised to proceed. A cluster of roughly 10 to 15 individuals dressed in saffron-coloured caps and scarves gathered near the demonstration site and began chanting "Jai Shri Ram," prompting a brief flare of tension in the area. Officers stepped in and guided the group away from the location. No details about the group's connections or loyalties had been established at that point.
Calls for Kumar's departure from opposition quarters, alongside questions about reported divisions within the Election Commission of India, have formed the backdrop against which the current unrest has taken shape. Dipke has sought responses from the election authority across the country, with Friday's gathering in Mumbai forming part of that broader effort.
