Thousands protest in New Delhi against voter roll revision — Dawn

Thousands of people took to the streets in New Delhi, India, on November 1 in a protest led by opposition politicians. They demanded the resignation of the head of India’s Election Commission over the revision of voter lists. The opposition believes the process unfairly benefits Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Dawn reports.

March to Ramlila Maidan

The protest was led by Rahul Gandhi, the leader of the opposition Indian National Congress party. Demonstrators marched from central areas of the capital to Ramlila Maidan, a large open-air venue. They beat drums and chanted a slogan accusing authorities of stealing votes and demanding that they step down.

Nandita, a 46-year-old protest participant, told AFP that she has been a voter since the age of 18, but has now discovered that her name was removed from the list. She also mentioned the rising cost of living and said that people can peacefully express their position in the streets.

Disputes over the lists

A nationwide revision of electoral registers over the past month has sparked political disputes and street protests. The Election Commission says the procedure is necessary to ensure the accuracy of the lists. The agency and the BJP deny the opposition’s claims of manipulation in favor of the ruling party.

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According to Indian media reports cited by opposition parties in court documents, more than 133 million names were removed from the voter lists. Critics of the process believe the removals disproportionately affected minorities, primarily Muslims. BJP members previously claimed that numerous undocumented Muslim migrants from Bangladesh may have been illegally included in the registers.

Election authorities explain that the revision is intended to remove duplicates, records of deceased people and fraudulent entries, while eligible voters can apply to be included on the list. Human Rights Watch called the removal of voters arbitrary and deeply flawed and urged the authorities to cancel the revision procedure.

The youth online movement Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) has also joined the campaign against the revision of the registers. Some of its leaders were temporarily detained during protests last month. The movement, founded in May, has gained millions of followers on social media.