YouTuber Dhruv Rathee and actor Prakash Raj joined the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP)'s protest against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in Bengaluru on Thursday, with Rathee making it clear that he was not participating in the agitation for “regime change”.
The protest, led by CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke at Bengaluru's Freedom Park, focused on demands for greater transparency in the electoral roll revision process and the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
Rathee raises ‘vote chor’ slogan
Speaking at the demonstration, Rathee accused the Election Commission of India of having “zero transparency and zero accountability” over the SIR exercise.
“I have not come here for regime change,” Rathee said, according to news agency PTI.
Dipke later shared a video from the Bengaluru protest in which Rathee could be seen leading the slogan “vote chor gaddi chodh”, or “vote thief, leave the throne”, with the crowd repeating the chant.
Rathee had confirmed his participation in the Bengaluru programme before the protest, describing the campaign as a fight to “save democracy”.
Prakash Raj demands scrapping of SIR
Prakash Raj also joined the protest and called for the SIR exercise to be scrapped. He alleged that the exercise was not simply about deleting names from electoral rolls but amounted to an attack on the dignity and rights of citizens.
Raj also alleged that CEC Gyanesh Kumar was “acting at the behest of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah”, PTI reported.
The Bengaluru programme was organised as a “People's Tribunal”, where people from across Karnataka who claimed to have been affected by the SIR exercise were expected to share their experiences, including allegations that their names had been wrongly removed from electoral rolls.
CJP protest draws students and thousands of supporters
Thousands of CJP supporters and several student groups participated in the demonstration as protests against the Chief Election Commissioner were held in different parts of the country.
The protesters are demanding Gyanesh Kumar's resignation over the revision of electoral rolls, which they allege has resulted in more than 130 million names being removed from the rolls.
The Bengaluru protest also featured slogans and posters centred on alleged voter deletions and electoral integrity. Reports said the event was followed by a planned “chappal protest” in solidarity with women.
The CJP has also announced another demonstration at Delhi's Jantar Mantar on October 10, extending the campaign beyond Bengaluru.
Bengaluru protest follows Rahul Gandhi’s detention
The demonstration in Bengaluru came a day after opposition leader Rahul Gandhi was briefly detained by Delhi Police during an anti-CEC protest in the national capital.
Images of police personnel dragging Gandhi into a vehicle circulated widely on social media, giving fresh momentum to demonstrations demanding the removal of Gyanesh Kumar.
The protests have increasingly brought political leaders, activists, students and public figures together around allegations concerning the SIR exercise and the Election Commission's handling of electoral rolls.