Photos: Thousands detained in police crackdown on India’s youth protest

Demonstrators intercepted and detained as authorities crack down on ‘cockroach’ movement rally in central New Delhi.Policewomen try to stop a detained protester escaping from a bus during a protest by the Cockroach Janta Party seeking the resignation of India's Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, near the protest site in New Delhi, India. [Adnan Abidi/Reuters]Published On 11 Oct 202611 Oct 2026Thousands of people were detained across New Delhi on Saturday as Indian authorities mounted a sweeping security operation to stop a protest by the youth-led “cockroach” movement demanding the resignation of the country’s election chief.Police fanned out across India’s capital to block access to Jantar Mantar, a designated protest site, stopping buses and cars at checkpoints, erecting barricades and deploying antiriot vehicles equipped with tear gas launchers along key routes.Many demonstrators were intercepted long before they reached central New Delhi, chased away or dragged into police vehicles and taken to temporary detention centres. Several movement leaders, opposition lawmakers and student activists were detained en route, effectively halting the rally before it began.Authoritie...