Indian police detain protesters in Gen Z-led protests over voter roll changes

Indian police detained several people in New Delhi on Saturday, disrupting a second day of Gen Z-led protests against changes to voter rolls.

The Cockroach Janta Party and other opposition groups backed the demonstration. Protesters say the changes benefit Prime Minister Narendra Modi's governing party.

Why are people protesting in India over voter roll changes?

Protesters say the changes to voter rolls benefit Modi's governing party. They are demanding the resignation of India's election chief, Gyanesh Kumar.

The demonstrations are the latest in a series of youth-led protests this year, putting pressure on Modi unprecedented in his 12 years in power.

What happened at the Delhi protest on Saturday?

About 100 demonstrators removed security barricades and chanted "vote thief, leave the post" and "Gyanesh Kumar, step down" before police forcibly detained some of them. Independent Member of Parliament Kapil Sibal, All India Students' Association President Neha Bora and political activists Prashant Bhushan and Yogendra Yadav were among the protesters, according to a Reuters witness.

Police declined to comment on the number and identity of those detained. "First they removed people from the voters list and now they are not letting us raise our voice against this. This is not acceptable," Bora told Reuters. Kumar, the chief of the Election Commission, has not commented on the protests or the demands that he step down.

What happened at the Delhi protest on Friday?

On Friday, police stopped a group of protesters from gathering and bundled them into buses. Several nearby metro stations remained shut amid tight security. Police released many of those detained, but charged several of them with allegedly violating orders banning mass gatherings in Delhi, according to a police source.

What are the voter roll changes in India?

Critics say a nationwide voter-verification exercise launched last year has led to millions of eligible voters being removed from electoral rolls.

The commission, long regarded as one of the country's most trusted institutions, says the exercise is intended to remove duplicate, deceased or ineligible voters. On Friday, the commission directed officials to register newly eligible voters and those omitted from electoral rolls.