Sealed Centre, Opaque Vans: Reporting the Anti-SIR Protests in a Closed-Off Delhi 

When the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) marched towards Parliament on July 20, thousands joined the CJP-led march through central Delhi despite barricades and movement restrictions, and police stopped them with batons and tear gas. The movement had begun in June–July with demonstrations against irregularities in medical and state board exams. By then, momentum had cooled for a while before a hunger strike on July 16 and the “Chalo Sansad” (March Towards Parliament) call brought it back into national headlines. After the July clashes, founder Abhijeet Dipke said the sit-in would continue but street marches would be suspended over participants’ safety. By October the target had shifted to India’s Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision and Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. The