Former Delhi chief minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Arvind Kejriwal was detained by Delhi Police on Saturday while marching towards Jantar Mantar to join a protest demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged voter roll irregularities.
The detention came amid a heavy security deployment across central Delhi ahead of a demonstration led by the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP), which has accused the election authorities of involvement in alleged “vote theft.”
Kejriwal had criticized the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led central government earlier in the day, describing the security crackdown as “worse than Emergency” and condemning the detention of CJP leaders.
“Three-time Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal brutally taken into custody by Delhi Police, for demanding Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation,” senior AAP leader Atishi said in a post on X.
“Modi Ji: how many people will you put behind bars to save Gyanesh Kumar?” she added.
On Friday, Kejriwal had announced that he and his family would attend the protest, urging young people to join the demonstration seeking Kumar’s resignation over alleged irregularities in voter lists.
Following the detention of CJP leaders on Saturday morning, Kejriwal said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had shown that he was “scared” by arresting the protesters, whom he referred to as “cockroaches.”
Meanwhile, the AAP alleged that police had turned Kejriwal’s residence into a fortress ahead of the protest.
Delhi unit president Bharadwaj said the demonstrators wanted to raise their concerns peacefully, but the heavy deployment of security personnel was creating an atmosphere of fear.
“You cannot make Gen-Z keep quiet by force — these are our youth; talk to them, engage with them,” Bharadwaj said in a video message.
He added that India should uphold non-violence and the Constitution rather than create an atmosphere of fear.
Authorities deployed thousands of security personnel across central Delhi to prevent clashes and detain protesters or discourage them from reaching Jantar Mantar.
The Delhi Metro also suspended entry and exit services at 45 stations from 9pm on Friday until 6pm on Saturday as part of the security measures.