Indus Valley Times

NEW DELHI, OCT 10 : Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Arvind Kejriwal and Trinamool Congress (TMC) chief Mamata Banerjee were detained by Delhi Police on Saturday as security was tightened across central Delhi to prevent protesters from reaching Jantar Mantar for a demonstration demanding Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation over alleged vote theft and the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise.

Earlier in the day, former Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, along with other Left leaders were also detained as they headed to Jantar Mantar to join the protest.

Kejriwal was detained outside his residence while marching towards Jantar Mantar to join the protest called by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP). Banerjee, along with several TMC leaders, was detained after staging a sit-in on South Avenue, alleging that police had prevented them from proceeding to the protest site.

Following his detention, Kejriwal shared a video on X in which he said the country’s youth had awakened and asserted that protesters would not be intimidated.

In the video, Kejriwal, who was accompanied by AAP leader Sanjay Singh, said, “We have been detained by the police. Sanjay Singh is here with me. The youth of the country has awakened. We are not going to be intimidated by Modi’s tyranny. Now, Gyanesh Kumar will have to resign. People will not tolerate this stealing of votes anymore. You all should also come out of your homes and fight to save the country.”

Earlier in the day, the former Delhi chief minister had criticised the Centre over what he described as a security clampdown in central Delhi that was “worse than Emergency”, aimed at thwarting the CJP protest and detaining the outfit’s top leadership.

“Three-time Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal brutally taken into custody by Delhi Police, for demanding Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation. Modi Ji: how many people will you put behind bars to save Gyanesh Kumar?” senior AAP leader Atishi said in a post on X.

On Friday, Kejriwal had said that he and his family would attend the protest and urged young people to join the demonstration demanding Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation over alleged “vote theft”.

Following the detention of CJP leaders on Saturday morning, Kejriwal said that by arresting “cockroaches” on their flight, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had shown that he was “scared”.

Mamata, TMC leaders detained after South Avenue sit-in

TMC chief and former West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee said the situation in Delhi had gone “beyond Emergency” after she was detained along with party leaders protesting against CEC Gyanesh Kumar and the SIR exercise.

Banerjee, along with TMC joint secretaries Derek O’Brien and Dola Sen, Rajya Sabha MP Samirul Islam, Lok Sabha MP Pratima Mondal and former MP Saket Gokhale, staged a sit-in at a bus stop on South Avenue after they were allegedly stopped by police from proceeding to Jantar Mantar, around 5 km away, to join the CJP-called protest.

The TMC’s Delhi office is at 61, South Avenue, an address allocated to party leader Nadimul Haque.

Amid the police action against protesters who had gathered in response to the CJP’s call for the CEC’s resignation, Banerjee said, “I do not think they should be doing all this, because by taking such actions, they are only making the protesters more popular.”

“This has gone beyond an Emergency; it has become a Super Emergency. Maintaining peace and remaining calm is the most important thing, but what they are doing today is not right, neither for the country nor for its people,” she said.

The TMC said Banerjee and the other leaders staged the sit-in after police denied them permission to leave. The protesters held placards, while Banerjee wore a band-aid over her mouth. She said they had wanted to join the CJP protest but were denied permission.

“We came here because we were invited by the CJP students and youth, but so many leaders have already been detained, and nobody is being allowed to enter Jantar Mantar, including us, so we felt it was better to express our solidarity with the students, the younger generation, the INDIA alliance, other organisations and all the citizens of this country who are participating in this movement,” Banerjee told PTI.

Banerjee said they had planned to sit there until 5 pm but were subsequently detained by Delhi Police.

“… If we try to go there, they will not allow us to enter and may take us around Delhi in a vehicle, just as they are doing with Vijayan ji,” she said, referring to former Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who was detained by Delhi Police along with other CPI(M) leaders.

“We have received information that he has been taken around on the roads for nearly two hours, so it is better to sit here on the road and make our position clear; our message is simple — Save India and Save Democracy,” she said.

Banerjee also said AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal was scheduled to meet her on Saturday.

“Arvind was supposed to come to my house, and he had assured us last night that he would come, but I have received information that even he was not allowed to leave, and that is the problem… Instead of allowing people to participate peacefully, they are being stopped,” she said.

-PTI