Delhi closes six metro stations ahead of opposition protest over voter lists
Delhi Metro Closes Six Stations and Restricts Traffic for Election Protests
Authorities closed six metro stations and placed central New Delhi under tight security restrictions on Monday, October 12, 2026, as opposition parties prepared to march to the Supreme Court over a controversial national voter list revision. Reuters confirmed that the closures and traffic diversions across more than 20 road stretches are part of an ongoing security lockdown aimed at halting daily demonstrations led by opposition groups and the “cockroach” youth movement.
The protests center on the removal of over 130 million names from India’s electoral rolls during a verification exercise that began last year. Election Commission data breaks these deletions down to 28 million deceased individuals, 63 million relocated voters, and 30 million people who could not be traced. Opposition politicians claim the scrubbing disproportionately targets Muslim voters and other minorities unlikely to support Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Both the poll panel and the ruling party reject these allegations, asserting that the verification process is legitimate and that wrongly deleted voters retain the right to re-enrol.
Congress Party Demands Resignation of Chief Election Commissioner
The main opposition Congress party organized a march to the Supreme Court on Monday to deliver a formal memorandum to Chief Justice Surya Kant. The memorandum demands an end to what organizers call “vote theft” and calls for the immediate resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi posted a call to action on X, urging youth, opposition parties, and civil society groups to join the demonstration.
Chief Justice Kant declined an advance meeting request from Gandhi and a Congress delegation. According to a Congress source cited in the reporting, the court instructed the delegation to pursue legal avenues through formal judicial proceedings rather than private meetings, as the underlying voter list dispute is already active before the judiciary.
CJP Warns of Protests as Police Detain Demonstrators
Parallel to the Congress party actions, the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) announced plans to meet with Delhi Police to demand authorization for a new peaceful protest. CJP leadership warned they will issue a new protest call within 24 hours if police deny them a scheduled date. Over the weekend, police detained thousands of demonstrators in central Delhi, including leaders of the ‘Cockroach Janta Party’ (CJP), as security forces locked down central Delhi.
The youth movement has evolved into one of the biggest political challenges for Prime Minister Modi’s administration during his 12 years in power, organizing previous demonstrations around job scarcity and government school infrastructure. Political tensions escalated sharply last month after the Indian Express reported that Chief Election Commissioner Kumar’s two deputies had raised internal concerns regarding registration procedures, digital systems, and voter list revision methods.
At the same time, municipal authorities advise residents to monitor official transit updates as traffic diversions remain active across central Delhi.