India's 'Cockroach' youth movement is to rally in Mumbai and New Delhi to demand election chief's resignation

From the Newshound archive · first published 2 October 2026.

India's 'Cockroach Janata Party' youth movement is set to hold major protests in Mumbai on Friday, kicking off a nationwide campaign demanding the resignation of chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over contested voter roll revisions. Opposition parties and critics accuse the Election Commission of manipulating voter registrations to benefit Prime Minister Narendra Modi's ruling BJP, which both the commission and government deny. The movement previously forced India's education minister to resign in July through sustained street protests.

Two of the three election commissioners formally objected to voter roll decisions, questioning their legality — but Kumar disregarded them.

Millions of names were removed from India's voter rolls during the disputed revision process, fuelling accusations of systematic electoral manipulation.

A separate coalition of student and civil society groups is to rally simultaneously at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, amplifying pressure on the commission.