New Delhi / Mumbai, October 5, 2026 – Protests demanding action against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls intensified over the weekend, with significant demonstrations in Delhi and Mumbai. Opposition parties, student organisations and youth groups called for the CEC’s resignation and a halt to the voter-list revision exercise.
Delhi: Third Day of Protests and DetentionsIn the national capital, protests entered their third consecutive day on October 4. Members of the All India Students’ Association (AISA), AAP workers and other groups attempted to march towards Jantar Mantar. Delhi Police detained approximately 110–500 people after demonstrators tried to breach security barricades. Around 12–15 police personnel were reported injured in the clashes. Heavy deployment of forces, including the Rapid Action Force, drones and multi-layer barricading, was put in place.
Protesters raised slogans seeking Kumar’s resignation and the suspension of the SIR, citing concerns over large-scale deletions from electoral rolls and alleged unilateral decisions within the Election Commission.
Mumbai: Joint March by Thackeray CousinsIn Mumbai, Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) chief Raj Thackeray jointly led the “Virat Garjana Morcha”. The march, which drew thousands of participants including leaders from Congress and NCP-SP, started from Byculla/Metro Cinema and moved towards the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation headquarters.
Uddhav Thackeray described the CEC as a “weapon” of the ruling party and claimed the deletion of around 13 crore names from draft rolls amounted to disenfranchisement. Raj Thackeray demanded Kumar’s removal and a return to ballot-paper voting instead of EVMs.
The protests were triggered by reports that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had formally recorded objections at least 14 times over 10 months regarding SIR-related decisions, including changes to Form 6 and voter deletions. The Opposition has termed the exercise a threat to democratic rights.
The Election Commission of India and the BJP have firmly rejected allegations of politically motivated deletions, stating that the SIR is aimed at removing duplicate, deceased or ineligible entries to ensure clean electoral rolls.
The Supreme Court is separately hearing related petitions challenging the CEC’s functioning and the SIR process.
