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Live Reporting Edited by Manish Adhikary in London and produced by Sharanya Hrishikesh and Zoya Mateen in Delhi A capital under 'seige' published at 06:41 BST Geeta Pandey Reporting from Jantar Mantar, Delhi Delhi feels like it is under siege, with barricades and diversions on major roads leading to the city centre. A journey that would normally take 15 minutes took me an hour and 10 minutes this morning. At Jantar Mantar, thousands of police and paramilitary personnel have been deployed.
The main protest site has been cordoned off with metal barricades and ropes, keeping people out. Announcements asking people to cooperate with the police can be heard constantly over loudspeakers at the traffic roundabout. Image caption, The protest site has been cordoned off Delhi has been turned into a fortress published at 06:38 BST Delhi had been put on high alert ahead of the protests, with thousands of security personnel deployed across the Indian capital.
According to reports, around 23,000 central security personnel have been called in to assist the city police with maintaining law and order over the weekend. Police have put up barricades around Jantar Mantar - the planned protest site - and along roads leading to the Election Commission office and key buildings nearby. More surprising are the larger restrictions - several trains to and from major Delhi stations have been cancelled and dozens of metro stations have been closed from Friday night.
This means even people who don't plan to attend the protests will have a tough time travelling on Saturday. These restrictions remain in place despite the Supreme Court asking the Delhi Police on Friday not to inconvenience the people of Delhi by shutting down public transport. Authorities have also closed liquor shops on Friday and Saturday as a “preventative” step to maintain public order.
Delhi has seen large protests many times over the years, but it is rare for such overarching restrictions to be imposed. Image source, Reuters Image caption, Thousands of police and paramilitary personnel have been deployed in Delhi What is the CJP? published at 06:36 BST The Cockroach Janta Party, or CJP, started as an internet joke. Founded in May by Abhijeet Dipke, the group emerged as a satirical collective after remarks by India's senior-most judge comparing some unemployed young people to cockroaches.
But the joke soon turned serious, tapping into anger over unemployment, exam paper leaks and government accountability. The group made headlines with protests over alleged irregularities in a key medical entrance exam, forcing then-Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan to resign in July. Now, the CJP has a new target - India's Election Commission.
It accuses the commission of unfairly removing eligible voters from electoral rolls – an allegation the organisation denies. Image source, NurPhoto via Getty Images Image caption, Protests led by the CJP ended with a rare resignation of a federal minister just two months ago What’s happening today? published at 06:34 BST Protesters are attempting to march to Jantar Mantar - an 18th century astronomical observatory and the Indian capital's best-known protest site - to demand electoral reforms and the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. They accuse Kumar of manipulating voter rolls to benefit Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Both the Election Commission and BJP have denied this. The CJP’s protest call has been backed by several other organisations, so the expectation was of huge crowds reaching the site. But police have been detaining people near Jantar Mantar, so we haven't seen any larger crowds yet.
Many people may also be deterred by the heavy travel restricitons and police presence in place across the city. Image source, Reuters Image caption, The police have cordoned off protest site Jantar Mantar Welcome to the BBC’s live coverage published at 06:34 BST India's Gen Z-led Cockroach Janta Party says its main leaders, including founder Abhijeet Dipke, have been detained from the Delhi airport on their way to a protest march in the city. The government or Delhi Poice have not commented on the CJP's claim yet.
Dozens of others have also been detained in Delhi, while many people have been stopped on their way to attend the protest. Protesters are demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and calling for electoral reforms. Security has been tightened across Delhi, with restrictions in place in several areas.
Stay with us as we bring you live updates throughout the day.
Source: BBC
