The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) has announced an anti-Special Intensive Revision (SIR) protest in Kochi on November 7, demanding the cancellation of the electoral roll revision exercise and the removal of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar. Titled “Jantar Mantar at Kochi”, the demonstration will be held at Rajendra Maidan from 4 pm. CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke, national secretary Aafreen Nawaz and south zone lead Vijay Mallangi are scheduled to attend.
The protest follows the detention and arrests of CJP leaders during demonstrations in Delhi last month. The Election Commission, meanwhile, maintains that SIR is aimed at ensuring accurate and credible electoral rolls while ensuring that eligible citizens are not excluded.
Kochi Protest Planned
CJP announced the protest in an X post on November 5 with the message, “Save Democracy! Cancel SIR!” The group’s posters also carry the demand, “Remove Gyanesh Kumar | Cancel SIR”, placing both the electoral revision exercise and the CEC at the centre of its campaign. Dipke, Nawaz and Mallangi are listed among the leaders expected to participate in the Kochi demonstration.
In a recent Instagram post, Abhijeet Dipke also urged people in Kerala to join the protest in large numbers, calling for greater public participation in the November 7 mobilisation. The protest is being presented by CJP as a campaign to raise concerns over the electoral-roll revision process and voting rights.
SIR Figures Explained
As many as 8,57,298 names were removed during the SIR process in Kerala. The Election Commission also said that 53,229 voters were removed from the draft roll after hearings; these included people who had died, moved elsewhere, obtained foreign citizenship or had duplicate entries. At the same time, more than 13.5 lakh applications for inclusion through Form 6 were accepted during the relevant period, demonstrating that the revision process also involved additions and corrections rather than only deletions.
The Election Commission has defended the exercise, saying SIR is intended to ensure that no eligible Indian citizen is excluded while identifying and removing invalid entries, including those relating to deceased persons, duplicate registrations, permanently shifted electors and people otherwise ineligible for registration. The Commission says the process includes house-to-house verification, publication of draft rolls, claims and objections, and a notice-and-hearing stage before the final electoral roll is prepared.
Delhi Protests Escalated
The Kochi mobilisation follows a series of protests by CJP leaders in Delhi last month. Dipke, along with CJP leaders Ashutosh Ranka and Saurav Das, was detained by Delhi Police while attempting to organise a demonstration against CEC Gyanesh Kumar and SIR at Jantar Mantar. Police said the group did not have permission to hold the protest.
Ranka and Das subsequently entered the restricted Jantar Mantar area and waved the national flag in protest against the site’s denotification. They were arrested and spent about a week in judicial custody before being released on October 21 after giving an undertaking that they would not organise further protests at Jantar Mantar while the site remained denotified.
Jantar Mantar Denotified
Delhi Police subsequently removed Jantar Mantar from the list of designated protest sites. The move followed the Supreme Court’s October 9 observations that suitable alternative sites with facilities for peaceful demonstrations should be identified. On October 12, Delhi Police modified its standing order and designated Ramlila Ground, Burari Ground and CBD Ground as alternative protest venues. The police notification said the decision was based on recommendations made by a committee constituted by the Union Ministry of Home Affairs.
The Delhi High Court is continuing to examine a challenge related to the denial of permission to protest at Jantar Mantar. The matter is scheduled to be heard again on November 17. This means the legal question surrounding access to designated protest spaces remains separate from CJP’s political opposition to SIR and the Election Commission.
Campaign Moves South
The Kochi protest is CJP’s first major move since several of its leaders were arrested during the Delhi demonstrations. The group had also extended support to the INDIA bloc’s November 1 “Chalo Dilli” mobilisation but did not participate in the Opposition rally at Ramlila Maidan, with Dipke indicating that CJP wanted to retain its independent identity.
For CJP, the Kochi demonstration provides an opportunity to take its campaign against SIR beyond Delhi and into a state where the electoral-roll revision has already been completed. For election authorities, however, the issue is one of maintaining accurate rolls while providing mechanisms for eligible voters to challenge omissions or errors. Kerala’s experience also shows that the final electoral roll can differ substantially from the draft after claims, objections and hearings are considered.
The Logical Indian’s Perspective
Electoral rolls are fundamental to democracy, and concerns about the wrongful exclusion of eligible voters deserve transparent answers, accessible grievance mechanisms and careful scrutiny. At the same time, periodic verification of voter lists is an established part of maintaining their accuracy, and disagreements over the process should not descend into confrontation or intimidation.
Political groups have a right to raise concerns peacefully, while electoral authorities have a responsibility to communicate clearly and ensure that legitimate grievances are heard. As CJP takes its anti-SIR campaign to Kochi, can sustained dialogue between political groups, citizens and election authorities help protect both voting rights and public trust in the electoral process?
Also Read: Karnataka CM DK Shivakumar Seeks CSR Support To Transform 1,000 Rural Government Schools
Save Democracy! Cancel SIR! Join Us – 7th November – 4 PM | Rajendra Maidan, Kochi 📍 https://t.co/yPY824x1mm
— Cockroach Janta Party – CJP (@Cockroachisback) November 5, 2026
