Indian Court Releases Cockroach Movement Leaders
Source reports published 21 Oct 2026, 10:00 am AEST
A court in Delhi ordered the release of Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, leaders of the Cockroach Janta Party, following their arrest for protesting alleged electoral fraud and holding a prohibited demonstration.
What happened
- A special magistrate in Delhi ordered the release of Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, leaders of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), on Wednesday.
- They had been detained for a week following their arrest by Delhi police for participating in a march protesting alleged manipulation of the country’s electoral roll and holding up an Indian flag at a cordoned-off site.
- The pair were charged with trespass and violating the peace and sentenced to five days, extended by two further days.
- Following their release, Das stated that ‘truth has triumphed’.
- Abhijeet Dipke, the founder of the CJP movement, vowed that the arrests would not intimidate the movement, stating they would ‘gather, re-strategise, and determine how to move forward’.
- The CJP has been protesting for the resignation of Gyanesh Kumar, the chief election commissioner, and demanding a review of the electoral roll, which has resulted in the deletion of over 130 million names from the voter register.
- The BJP denies any interference.
Original reporting
- Guardian: Indian court orders release of two leaders of Cockroach movement
2026-10-21T00:00:00+00:00 - Al Jazeera: India’s ‘Cockroach’ leaders free after a week in jail
2026-10-21T00:00:00+00:00