CJP Warns of Nationwide Protest From October 2 if Gyanesh Kumar Does Not Resign

The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) has warned that it will launch nationwide protests from October 2 if Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar does not resign. CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke said on September 25 that, if Kumar does not step down, the protest would begin in Mumbai and then extend to cities across India.

At a press conference in Delhi on Thursday, CJP demanded Kumar’s resignation and raised demands linked to the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and upcoming elections. The group has also called for an independent examination of SIR-related decision-making and changes to the existing legal framework for appointing Election Commissioners.

The warning comes amid a wider controversy over reported disagreements within the Election Commission. Reports have said Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi raised objections on several occasions. The Election Commission has said differing views and written observations are part of institutional deliberations and has maintained that its decisions, including those concerning SIR, were unanimous.

At the time of publication, no resignation by Gyanesh Kumar or new Election Commission decision following the CJP ultimatum had been announced.