The Indian local court announced on Monday that the imprisonment of two leaders of the 'Susk' movement, named Aashtosh Ranka and Sourav Das, will be extended for two more days. The two, along with 12 others, were arrested last week following a protest at the historical site of Jantar Mantar, which was due to a violation of the ban on protests.
Details of Arrest and Protests
The leaders of the Susk party, Aashtosh Ranka and Sourav Das, along with 14 others, entered the Jantar Mantar observatory on Tuesday by crossing barriers. This action took place one day after the site was removed from the list of designated locations for protests. They raised the Indian flag and shouted slogans demanding the resignation of the Election Commissioner. Immediately after this action, the police arrested them, and the court issued a five-day imprisonment order for them.
Extension of Imprisonment and Reactions
In the session on Monday, the local court extended the imprisonment of these two leaders for two more days at the request of the Delhi police to allow more time for investigations. The group's lawyer, Ratna Singh, told reporters outside the court, "This is a complete mockery of the judicial system" and added that they intend to challenge this ruling in a higher court.
The Susk movement, primarily led by youth, has been holding daily protests this month along with opposition parties and leftist student organizations, demanding the resignation of Gianesh Kumar, the Election Commissioner, over revisions to the electoral rolls that they claim favor the ruling party led by Narendra Modi.
Analysis of the Current Situation
The Election Commission of India has stated that there is no discrimination against parties and that removed voters can re-register. On the other hand, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has accused its rivals of trying to undermine democracy, claiming they question legitimate electoral processes.
The founder of the Susk party, Abhijit Deepke, along with other student leaders and several of their supporters, were also arrested on Friday for protesting in central Delhi. This protest was held in support of Das and Ranka, who are seen as one of the biggest political challenges to Modi and the BJP in the past 12 years.
Recent protests began after the Indian Express reported that two of Kumar's deputies raised concerns internally about changes to the voter lists and digital systems. According to the Election Commission, 130 million names have been removed from the voter lists since last year, equivalent to more than the population of Japan. Of these, 28 million have died, 63 million have moved, and 30 million are unidentifiable.
