Mass protests demanding poll chief resignation shake India for third day

Protesters say the election commission’s voter-roll revision has removed millions of eligible voters to benefit Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling BJP party.Thousands of youth and opposition protesters have rallied for a third day in India demanding the resignation of the country’s election commission chief.Thousands marched in Mumbai on Sunday, while others gathered for a third day of demonstrations in New Delhi. The protests began on Friday demanding that India" class="entity-link entity-organization" data-entity-id="3902" data-entity-type="organization">Election Commission of India (ECI) chief Gyanesh Kumar step down due to reports that he has overseen voter-roll revisions removing millions from electoral lists.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3Dodik declared Bosnia ‘dead’. Irrelevant rhetoric or serious threat?list 2 of 3Why is fighting intensifying in Yemen’s Taiz governorate?list 3 of 3How was Flydubai co-pilot cleared despite being deemed a security risk?end of listProtesters say the disenfranchisement stands to benefit Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Both the ECI and the BJP have denied the allegations.Led by opposition leaders Raj Thackeray and Uddhav Thackeray, thousands marched in Mumbai on Sunday, waving Indian flags and calling for Kumar to step down.In the capital, New Delhi, protesters started gathering in the early evening. As on previous days, some were detained by police as they arrived, according to the Reuters news agency.Police in the capital have clamped down in a bid to prevent protesters from assembling over the last two days, detaining dozens and taking them away by bus.Some of the detainees were released later on Friday and Saturday, but police registered cases against some on charges of violating orders banning mass gatherings in the centre of the capital.Police and security personnel detain a protester during a demonstration against India’s Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar in New Delhi on October 3, 2026, to demand his resignation [Arun Sankar/AFP]“⁠I just want to tell the ruling party this much … We are angry about how you are wielding that power. ⁠It’s the people of this country who should decide who sits in power and who sits in opposition, not the election commission,” Raj Thackeray told the crowd in Mumbai.