📷 Image: Wikimedia Commons / Abhilash Thiru
Politics
India’s ‘Cockroach’ Party Claims Mass Detentions Ahead of Weekend Protest
✍️ The Guardian
🗓 10 Oct 2026, 05:03 AM
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The ‘Cockroach’ party alleges that authorities have detained numerous members in the days leading up to a planned weekend protest, accusing the government of suppressing dissent.
The anti‑establishment group known as the ‘Cockroach’ party said on Friday that police and other law‑enforcement agencies have taken a large number of its activists into custody across several locations in the country.
According to the party, the arrests are timed to coincide with a mass demonstration it has scheduled for the upcoming weekend, a protest intended to draw attention to what it describes as growing authoritarian tendencies. The party claims the detentions are meant to intimidate its supporters and derail the planned rally.
Government officials have not issued a formal response to the accusations, and a ministry spokesperson declined to comment when approached for a statement. Human‑rights observers have called for transparent investigations and for the rights of the detained members to be respected.
Despite the arrests, the ‘Cockroach’ party has urged its remaining members to remain peaceful and to proceed with the protest, warning that any incidents of violence would be blamed on the authorities.
According to the party, the arrests are timed to coincide with a mass demonstration it has scheduled for the upcoming weekend, a protest intended to draw attention to what it describes as growing authoritarian tendencies. The party claims the detentions are meant to intimidate its supporters and derail the planned rally.
Government officials have not issued a formal response to the accusations, and a ministry spokesperson declined to comment when approached for a statement. Human‑rights observers have called for transparent investigations and for the rights of the detained members to be respected.
Despite the arrests, the ‘Cockroach’ party has urged its remaining members to remain peaceful and to proceed with the protest, warning that any incidents of violence would be blamed on the authorities.