New Delhi, October 2026 : The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) on Monday said it would give the Delhi Police 24 hours to respond to its request for permission to hold a demonstration at Jantar Mantar, as its agitation against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar continued.
CJP Co-Convenor Saurav Das maintained that peaceful protest was a constitutional right and said the party would continue to exercise that right. He added that the party had left it to the police to decide the date and time for the proposed demonstration but would not accept an indefinite delay in granting permission.
“Peaceful protest is a right, a constitutional right, and people are already exercising it. People will continue to hold peaceful protests,” Das said.
He pointed out that police authorities often asked organisers to approach them at least 10 days before a proposed demonstration. This time, however, the party had allowed the police to suggest a suitable date and time, he said.
“We are leaving everything to them, but we are also saying that they should not keep the matter pending indefinitely. We will give them a 24-hour ultimatum. Let us see what happens after we speak to them,” Das added.
Meanwhile, CJP Co-Convenor Ashutosh Ranka visited Parliament Street Police Station, where he said party representatives would formally approach the Delhi Police to seek a date for the proposed protest at Jantar Mantar.
“We are going to ask Delhi Police for a date to hold a protest at Jantar Mantar. We hope the police will give us a date. If they do not, we will make another call within 24 hours,” Ranka said.
The latest developments follow the party's allegations that the government was attempting to suppress demonstrations against the Election Commission and its chief. The CJP had claimed on Sunday that the government was “scared” and that protests originally directed against CEC Gyanesh Kumar were increasingly turning into a confrontation with the Centre.
Addressing a press conference on Sunday, hours after a Delhi court ordered his release following preventive arrest, Ranka accused the authorities of imposing excessive restrictions on peaceful demonstrators.
“In the last 72 hours, the country has witnessed peak authoritarianism. Thousands of peaceful protesters who wanted to stage an agitation at a designated protest site have been detained from across the country,” he alleged.
Ranka further claimed that the nature of the agitation had changed, arguing that the government's response had shifted the focus of the protests from the Election Commission to the Union government.
“One thing has become clear: the fight that was against the Election Commission and Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar has been turned by PM Modi and Amit Shah into a fight against themselves,” he said.
The party's agitation centres on allegations concerning the functioning of the Election Commission and the conduct of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. Opposition parties have raised concerns about voter deletions and demanded accountability from the poll panel.
The CJP's latest move places the immediate focus on whether the Delhi Police will grant permission for the proposed gathering at Jantar Mantar. The party has said it will decide its next course of action after receiving a response or once the 24-hour deadline expires.
