NEW DELHI: Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) national convenor Arvind Kejriwal on Friday urged people across India to launch protests demanding the resignation of chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar after Delhi Police detained him outside his Lodhi Estate residence. Kejriwal, who was taken into custody ahead of the planned protest in the capital, called on supporters to replicate the demonstration across the country.In a video shared on X, the former Delhi chief minister struck a defiant note, declaring, “The youth of the nation has awakened.” He then showed other protesters detained alongside him, including AAP leader Sanjay Singh.As Kejriwal recorded the scene from the detention bus, protesters could be heard raising slogans demanding Kumar’s resignation.In a separate interaction with the media after his detention, Kejriwal appealed to supporters nationwide to turn the protest into a broader movement. Calling for demonstrations beyond Delhi, he said, “Turn the entire country into Jantar Mantar.”His remarks came as opposition leaders and protesters sought CEC Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation, with the planned demonstration in the capital prompting a police crackdown. Delhi Police detained several prominent political leaders as part of efforts to prevent the protest.
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Delhi Police imposed heightened security restrictions on Saturday morning ahead of the planned demonstration at Jantar Mantar. Officers intercepted Kejriwal shortly after he left his residence and took him into preventive custody.Around 5,000 people, including student organisers, activists and opposition leaders, were reportedly taken into preventive custody across the national capital as police moved to prevent gatherings. Security measures also included restrictions on movement around key locations in central Delhi.The police action came amid a wider mobilisation by political and student groups demanding accountability and Kumar’s resignation. Authorities sought to prevent protesters from assembling at Jantar Mantar, a designated protest site in the capital.