Shabana Azmi and other film personalities join Mumbai protest demanding CEC resignation

Veteran actor Shabana Azmi and several other film industry figures joined a protest at Mumbai's Shivaji Park on Friday. The gathering was organised by the Cockroach Janta Party as a Jail Bharo movement to demand the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.

Protesters and Supporters

Apart from Shabana Azmi, the protest saw the presence of actor Naseeruddin Shah, filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj, singer Rekha Bhardwaj, and musician Vishal Dadlani. Actor Prakash Raj also sent a video message supporting the agitation. Shabana Azmi told the crowd that people have the right to protest through democratic means if their names are removed from electoral rolls. CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke met Naseeruddin Shah during the event, and actor Prakash Raj criticised the SIR process in his video address.

Police Action and Official Response

The protest went ahead even though Mumbai Police had denied permission for the gathering. Police estimated that about 4,000 people were present by 5 pm, with heavy police deployment and barricades at entry points. CJP leader Abhijeet Dipke had challenged Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis to send protesters to jail. Meanwhile, lyricist Javed Akhtar responded on social media to concerns about noise pollution raised by local residents regarding the Shivaji Park event.

Context

The Cockroach Janta Party describes its movement as independent and has stated it will not join the Opposition's planned October 6 protest against the Election Commission. The agitation follows recent reports about internal objections allegedly raised by other Election Commissioners regarding SIR decisions, though the poll panel has stated that all decisions were taken unanimously.