Mamata Banerjee, Arvind Kejriwal among 4 ex-CMs detained in Delhi's anti-CEC protest crackdown

Several INDIA bloc leaders, including former chief ministers Arvind Kejriwal, Mamata Banerjee, Pinarayi Vijayan and Manik Sarkar were detained by Delhi Police on Saturday as they attempted to join the protest at Jantar Mantar demanding Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar's resignation over alleged irregularities in electoral rolls.

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The detentions took place at multiple locations across the capital amid heavy security, barricades and restrictions on movement in view of the demonstration called by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

Besides Kejriwal, Banerjee, Vijayan and Sarkar, others detained included CPI(M) general secretary M A Baby, veteran Left leader Brinda Karat, CPI(ML) Liberation general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya, activist Yogendra Yadav and lawyer Prashant Bhushan.

Kejriwal was detained outside his Lodhi Estate residence while marching towards Jantar Mantar with AAP leaders and workers. As police personnel moved to take him away, party workers tried to prevent his detention.

Police personnel lifted him by his legs and chest and carried him towards a police bus.

Those party leaders detained with him included Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Singh, Delhi unit chief Saurabh Bharadwaj, MLA Kuldeep Kumar and national media in-charge Anurag Dhanda. Senior AAP leader Gopal Rai was also detained while protesting at the party office.

Before his detention, Kejriwal urged young people across the country to protest against alleged electoral malpractice.

"... Till now, Modi ji used to win elections only by stealing votes. Now he has been caught red-handed," he said.

"Wherever Modi ji stops you, sit there. Turn that place into Jantar Mantar. Make the whole country a Jantar Mantar," he said.

After being detained, Kejriwal demanded Kumar's resignation, saying, "The youth of the country is awake. They are not afraid of Modi ji's tyranny. Now CEC Gyanesh Kumar has to resign. People are not going to tolerate his vote theft anymore."

Banerjee was detained along with Trinamool Congress leaders from South Avenue, where they staged a sit-in after being stopped from proceeding to Jantar Mantar.

Banerjee, accompanied by TMC leaders Derek O'Brien, Dola Sen, Samirul Islam, Pratima Mondal and Saket Gokhale, wore a band-aid over her mouth during the protest.

"This has gone beyond an Emergency; it has become a Super Emergency," she said, adding that the police action was neither right for the country nor its people.

"Our message is simple -- Save India and Save Democracy," she said, adding that the group had initially planned to sit there till 5 pm.

Vijayan was detained along with Sarkar, Baby and Karat as they attempted to proceed to Jantar Mantar. Several Left leaders were detained outside Kerala Bhawan, where some CPI(M) leaders had stayed overnight. They raised slogans against the government before being taken away in buses.

"Amit Shah, dekho hum Jantar Mantar aa gaye," Karat told PTI, describing the slogans raised by the protesters.

Vijayan later took to X to post,

"Imagine being so scared of the opposition that you make the Delhi Police detain elected reps and drive them around in circles for an hour just to keep them quiet."

"Modi's panic is really showing here, and honestly, it's just embarrassing at this point. Such high-handed tactics are a blatant attack on our democratic rights, but we will not be intimidated," he added.

Sarkar was detained along with CITU All India General Secretary Elamaram Kareem, student activists and trade union leaders at Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in Bawana.

Meanwhile, Bhattacharya, Yadav, Bhushan and All India Students' Association (AISA) president Neha were detained near INA market while marching towards Safdarjung Flyover. CPI(ML) Liberation leader Balaji said they were raising slogans against Kumar when police detained them and took them away in different vehicles.

Bhattacharya criticised the security deployment, saying the restrictions had failed to prevent people from joining the protest.

"To save Gyanesh Kumar, Modi govt made whole Delhi a police camp, thousands of police personnel are there yet the number of people who came on the streets it said you can stop one Jantar Mantar, but the spirit of Jantar Mantar, the spirit of movement has spread," he said.

Separately, Rajya Sabha member A A Rahim and detained Students' Federation of India (SFI) activists announced a hunger strike at Nangloi Stadium, where around 300 students had been detained. They demanded action against and an apology from a Delhi Police inspector who allegedly misbehaved with students, besides the return of mobile phones and bags they claimed had been taken away by police.

In a statement, the CPI(M) condemned the detention of hundreds of youth and student protesters, alleging that police had turned the capital into a fortress and prevented people from reaching the designated protest site.

It said hundreds of activists from the Democratic Youth Federation of India, SFI and other organisations had gathered despite barricades and police action, alleging that several protesters were injured after being manhandled and thrown into buses.