‘Delhi was a warzone, Mumbai a concert’: Protests against CEC Gyanesh Kumar strike contrasting notes

A few hours into the Gandhi Jayanti protests at Mumbai’s Shivaji Park and Delhi’s Jantar Mantar to demand the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, the contrast in the mood at each venue could not have been more stark.

Instagram commentator Oamkaar put it succinctly. “Delhi is a warzone,” he noted. “Mumbai is a concert.”

What united protestors in each city, though, was their anger against Kumar, who they held responsible for the chaotic Special Intensive Revision of the voters’ rolls that has resulted in millions of citizens across the country being deleted from the lists.

Since the exercise began in June 2025, there have been concerns that the SIR could deny genuine electors their right to vote and shape election outcomes.

In the national capital, the Delhi Police had learnt its lessons from the student protests in July and blocked all roads leading up to the Jantar Mantar protest site on Friday. Protest leaders such as Neha Bora and Yogendra Yadav were detained as they made their way to the site.

Protestors were not allowed to gather in a single spot, which resulted in them being scattered around the Jantar Mantar area. The biggest group stood at Janpath Road, surrounded by hundreds of police officials and personnel of the Rapid Action Force...

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