Law enforcement authorities in Mumbai initiated legal proceedings on October 3 against supporters of the Cockroach Janata Party following an unauthorized public rally at Dadar. Investigators registered a first information report implicating ten named organisers along with an estimated 400 to 500 unidentified participants for holding an unpermitted assembly, blocking a thoroughfare, and operating public address equipment without clearance during an agitation demanding Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar step down immediately.
Unauthorized Gathering Near Shivaji Park Gate Number Six
According to police officials, the public demonstration unfolded on the evening of October 2 between 4 PM and 7 PM within the jurisdiction of the Shivaji Park police station. Crowds assembled right outside Gate Number 6 of the iconic ground, situated directly opposite the Meenatai Thackeray Memorial in Dadar West. Despite law enforcement explicitly denying official clearance for the gathering, participants converged along the public street, chanted political slogans, and mounted loudspeakers without the requisite regulatory permits, creating severe traffic obstruction and posing serious law-and-order concerns for municipal security teams.
Key Functionaries Named in Police Complaint
The formal police report names prominent members of the organisation, including Ajinkya Shinde, Pranay Ahire, Ashutosh Ranka, Saurav Das, Afreen Nawaz, Saumya Korde, Ankit Bhardwaj, Vijay Malangi, Yogesh Ingle, and the party founder Abhijeet Dipke, alongside hundreds of unnamed demonstrators. The agitation was branded by organisers as 'Season 2' of their broader campaign. It had been called as a formal jail bharo demonstration following circulating accounts of internal disagreements within the Election Commission of India, focusing its primary demand on the resignation of the Chief Election Commissioner.
Support From Prominent Artists and Public Personalities
Security agencies had deployed extensive personnel across the Dadar neighbourhood and set up barricades at critical access routes, yet thousands of citizens and sympathizers arrived to back the cause. The gathering drew conspicuous participation from notable cultural and public figures. Prominent actors Shabana Azmi and Naseeruddin Shah, alongside music composer Vishal Dadlani, attended in person and addressed the assembly regarding democratic resilience and voting entitlements. Actor Prakash Raj also extended solidarity via a prerecorded video statement, urging citizens to safeguard constitutional values. Slogans directed against both the central government and the election panel resonated throughout the ground's perimeter.
Heated Rhetoric and Direct Political Challenge
Addressing the gathered crowd, Cockroach Janata Party founder Abhijeet Dipke levied sharp criticisms against Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, and Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. Dipke defended the mass assembly as an inherent constitutional prerogative to peacefully protect citizens' electoral rights. Challenging the state administration's prior warnings against illegal assemblies, Dipke addressed the Chief Minister directly:
“If you had said three months, the entire city of Mumbai would have come to a complete standstill.”Following the unauthorized gathering, police officials are proceeding with further formal inquiries.
