India: End the crackdown on peaceful protests and release arbitrarily detained protesters
The brutal crackdown on peaceful protesters in New Delhi over the last weekend is alarming with mass detention, unlawful use of force, the targeting of journalists, human rights defenders including lawyers, and internet shutdowns, said rights groups in a statement.
Amnesty International, CIVICUS, Front Line Defenders and South Asians for Human Rights call on the Indian authorities to release everyone arbitrarily detained for the exercise of their right to freedom of peaceful assembly and ensure accountability for abuses by security forces.
On 10 October 2026, protests were called by the youth-led Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) and backed by student groups calling for the resignation of the Chief Election Commissioner of India, following reports that the nationwide Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls by the election commission removed around 130 million names from voter lists.
Since the call for protests, authorities used Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) to ban gatherings of more than five people. Ahead of the 10 October protest, more than 50,000 police and security personnel were reportedly deployed, some drawn from other states. Trains and buses to New Delhi were cancelled or suspended, metro train stations were closed, and the city’s borders were sealed to large vehicles. Anti-riot vehicles with tear gas launchers were stationed near protest sites.