Hundreds detained in Delhi, including leaders of the 'Cockroach' youth movement

Hundreds of demonstrators have reportedly been detained in Delhi, India's capital, at a protest by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), a movement led by young people. The group is calling for electoral reforms just months before important state elections.

The CJP says its founder, Abhijeet Dipke, and other leaders were detained shortly after landing in Delhi. Dipke started the movement in May, after India's Chief Justice compared some jobless young people to cockroaches. The CJP is not registered as a political party.

Security measures

Tens of thousands of security personnel were deployed in Delhi and roads were barricaded before the rally. Delhi Police had refused permission for the protest at Jantar Mantar, a well-known landmark in the capital, and has not commented on the detentions. Several trains to and from major Delhi stations were cancelled and dozens of metro stations closed from Friday night. Buses carrying detained protesters were seen leaving the protest site.

Dipke and two other leaders, Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, were detained on a flight from Mumbai on Saturday. The group says the three were taken to an undisclosed location. While they are held, the movement is being led by Ajinkya Shinde, who released a video saying that wherever police stop protesters, that place "will become your Jantar Mantar". Student activist Neha Bora, also detained, urged demonstrators to "hold the line".

Demands and the dispute over voter lists

The CJP wants Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar to resign, accusing him of manipulating voter lists. The Election Commission denies this. Under Kumar, the commission has been updating electoral rolls nationwide, saying it is a routine effort to remove dead, duplicate or ineligible voters. In many states the process has caused controversy, with tens of thousands of people alleging they were wrongly removed. The CJP and opposition parties accuse Kumar of favouring Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP); the commission and the BJP reject this.

Protester Sabika Muzaffar told the BBC she expected to be detained, and was taken away by police shortly afterwards.