The Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) has announced a nationwide campaign on Gandhi Jayanti if Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar does not resign by Oct. 2. The CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke has given the Election Commission chief a new ultimatum, saying the party will start an agitation from Mumbai on October 2 under the theme of “Save Democracy”. The movement, the party said, would go on to other cities in India.
The announcement comes at a time when the Election Commission and the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls are in deep dispute. On 24 September CJP called for Gyanesh Kumar to step down by 8 a.m. and threatened a nationwide protest if the demand was not met. The group has also referred to its proposed campaign as ‘Jantar Mantar 2.0’ as it has been associated with its earlier protests.
Dipke’s latest announcement places October 2 at the center of the organisation’s next phase of protests. Gandhi Jayanti, observed across India on October 2, is being chosen as the date for the proposed Mumbai mobilisation. CJP has described the campaign as an effort to “save democracy” and has indicated that demonstrations could later spread to multiple cities.
The CJP’s demand for Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation follows reports of disagreements within the Election Commission over aspects of electoral roll management and the SIR exercise. A report by several news organisations said Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had raised objections on several occasions over a period of 10 months regarding voter registration, deletion and restoration of names as well as electoral roll systems.
CJP made election transparency and voter rights the focus of its campaign. It believes the electoral system is unfair to citizens, and that electoral rolls should be revamped. These allegations are the party’s claims and are part of its political campaign.
In addition to the resignation demand, CJP has raised other demands related to the electoral process. Reports say the organisation has asked for the SIR exercise to be frozen and for the electoral roll to be restored to its January 2025 status. It has also sought an independent inquiry into the Election Commission's centralised system for processing electoral-roll decisions.
VIDEO | Cockroach Janta Party co-convenor Saurav Das (@SauravDassss) puts forward three demands related to Election Commission of India.
— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) September 24, 2026
He says, "Look, this is a very big conspiracy being plotted against the youth of the country, and we, the people of the country, will… pic.twitter.com/4Gyp8Rh5Vy
The proposed October 2 campaign is therefore expected to go beyond a single protest in Mumbai. Dipke has said that the agitation could go from there to cities all around the country depending on the situation after the resignation deadline. The party’s announcement is another step in its collision with the Election Commission.
CJP’s recent activities have also focused on issues of elections, public institutions and accountability. The organisation had previously organized protests and has increasingly used public campaigns to draw attention to issues it says affect young voters and democratic participation. Its latest announcement also seeks to link its demands with a broader public mobilisation.
For now, the key point of the October 2 announcement is the Gandhi Jayanti mobilisation in Mumbai and the possibility of demonstrations spreading nationwide. And whether the campaign will proceed on the scale announced will depend on the course of political developments following the resignation ultimatum given to Gyanesh Kumar.
The controversy has exposed the Election Commission and electoral-roll revision process to fresh scrutiny. As we approach October 2, we expect CJP’s “Save Democracy” campaign to be a big focus, and how authorities will deal with such demonstrations.
