AAP Leaders Detained During Delhi Protest, Demand CEC Gyanesh Kumar’s Resignation

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders and workers detained during a protest at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on Friday asserted that they were “not afraid of the police” as they demanded the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar over allegations of “vote theft”.

The detained leaders were taken to Fatehpur Beri Police Station in south Delhi. The protest came amid renewed allegations by Opposition parties against Kumar, following a media report claiming differences within the Election Commission.

Speaking to IANS, former Delhi Chief Minister Atishi, who was among those detained, accused the BJP-led Centre of attempting to undermine citizens’ voting rights through the CEC.

“Indians got the right to vote when millions of freedom fighters sacrificed their lives to win independence for the country. Babasaheb Ambedkar gave us the right to vote,” Atishi said.

She alleged that no First Information Report (FIR) had been registered against Kumar over the alleged “vote theft”, while protesters demanding his resignation were being detained.

“No FIR is being registered against Gyanesh Kumar over vote theft, but those protesting to demand his resignation are being brutally picked up and taken to police stations. But we are not afraid of the police. The fight for democracy will continue,” she asserted.

AAP spokesperson Anurag Dhanda, who was also detained, accused the government of suppressing protests and alleged that the CEC had deprived people of their voting rights.

“We are simply demanding that democracy should not be destroyed. We were saying that people should have the right to vote. Gyanesh Kumar took away the right to vote and committed vote theft, yet the vote thief is not being put in jail. Instead, they brought us here and made us sit at the police station. This is a complete dictatorship of the Modi government,” Dhanda told IANS.

Meanwhile, several other AAP leaders, including Delhi party chief Saurabh Bharadwaj and MLA Jarnail Singh, participated in a protest march in the national capital.

Speaking to IANS, Bharadwaj said people from different sections of society, including political parties, social organisations, youth groups and student unions, were holding protests across the country to demand the CEC’s resignation.

“Various political parties, social organisations, youth groups, student unions, and students from colleges and universities are protesting across the country to save the country — to protect the country’s democracy. So, Gyanesh Kumar will have to be removed, reforms must be made in the Election Commission, and the irregularities in the SIR must be rolled back. This is the only solution, and the government will have to accept it,” he said.

Jarnail Singh alleged that the two other Election Commissioners had exposed Kumar and called for his arrest and dismissal over alleged deletion of voters’ names to benefit the BJP.

“The two fellow Election Commissioners have exposed the CEC. As long as we were saying it, it could have been termed as allegations, but now their crime has been proven. Gyanesh Kumar should face a case of treason, be arrested, and be dismissed immediately for deleting votes to help the BJP,” he said.

“The country won’t accept this kind of hooliganism,” he added.

AAP MLA Sanjeev Jha also accused the BJP and Kumar of conspiring to undermine democracy and demanded legal action against the CEC.

“A case of treason and betrayal against the country’s democracy should be filed against Gyanesh Kumar, and he should be immediately locked up in jail,” Jha said.

The AAP leaders’ demands came amid the Opposition’s continuing allegations of irregularities in the electoral process and calls for accountability from the Election Commission.