Narendra Modi, India's long-ruling strongman leader, faces a new challenge from unlikely young protesters like Mohini Majumdar, a 20-year-old Delhi University student. On Oct. 10, Majumdar and classmates planned to march to Jantar Mantar in Delhi to protest the chief election commissioner's deletion of over 130 million names from voter rolls. Police in camouflage intercepted the students, detaining them for hours.
The protest targeted Modi's handpicked election chief, whose actions threatened voter confidence in the world's largest democracy. Under the Cockroach Janata Party banner, these youths previously forced the resignation of India's education minister after a leaked exam paper sparked widespread demonstrations.
Authorities deployed 50,000 security personnel, shut metro stations, and blocked trains to quell dissent. Despite mass detentions, Modi appears more vulnerable than ever, as educated, middle-class Hindu youth — his former base — openly revolt against what they see as democratic erosion.
Majumdar, undeterred by arrest, joined protests the next day, declaring: "The moment you oppressed me, the fear was gone."
Source: New York Times Top Stories · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing