Organised by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), Saturday’s rally is expected to be the largest in a wave of near-daily protests against a voter list revision that has removed more than 130 million names and which critics say disproportionately affects marginalised and minority communities while benefiting Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Authorities have tightened security around Jantar Mantar, a designated protest site in central Delhi, after police refused to authorise the rally, citing a late application and alleged violations of undertakings given during previous demonstrations.

Police have warned of a forceful response if protesters defy the ban, while roads leading to the site have been blocked with multiple layers of metal barricades.

According to the Indian news agency ANI, authorities shut 57 metro stations from Friday night, cancelled several long-distance trains and suspended mobile internet services within a 4-kilometre (2.5-mile) radius of the protest area until Saturday night.

India’s Supreme Court said on Friday that some trains must continue operating and that a blanket closure of metro stations was unlikely.

The restrictions have drawn criticism from protest organisers, who accuse the authorities of disrupting public life to prevent demonstrations.

“The dictator would rather shut down the entire national capital and inconvenience millions of citizens than allow a peaceful protest at a designated protest site,” CJP chief Abhijeet Dipke said on X.

The CJP claims that at least 10,000 people, including protesters travelling to Delhi by train, have been detained across the country.

“You can detain the people, you cannot detain the movement,” said Neha Bora, national president of the All India Students’ Association, who has emerged as one of the leading figures in the protests.

The demonstrations centre on a voter list revision that the Election Commission says is intended to remove duplicate and ineligible voters and prevent “foreign illegal immigrants” from voting.

However, critics argue that the exercise has disproportionately affected marginalised and minority communities, prompting demands for Kumar’s resignation.

The controversy intensified after The Indian Express reported that Kumar’s two deputies had formally raised concerns about the revisions at least 14 times over the previous 10 months.

The Election Commission and the BJP have denied the allegations, while the ruling party has accused the opposition of misleading the public because it cannot win elections.

The CJP, which began as an online political satire movement in May, has since attracted a substantial following among young Indians.

The movement emerged after Chief Justice Surya Kant described unemployed young people as “cockroaches”, a remark that sparked nationwide outrage and helped fuel the group’s growth.

Its protests in July also contributed to mounting political pressure following exam paper leaks, which led to the resignation of Modi’s education minister.

The latest mobilisation comes months before a series of state elections scheduled for early 2027, including in Uttar Pradesh, India’s most populous state, which is governed by the BJP.