GUWAHATI | CJP spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka also announces nationwide protest from October 2 demanding CEC Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation

The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) on Monday alleged that the delimitation of Assembly constituencies in Assam was carried out in a manner that would benefit Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma in elections. CJP national spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka made the allegation while speaking to reporters in Guwahati. He also reiterated the organisation’s demand for the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and announced that the CJP would launch a nationwide protest from October 2.

“For 48 hours, the ball was in Gyanesh Kumar’s court; now, the ball is in CJP’s court. We will launch a nationwide protest starting October 2, and we will not back down until Gyanesh Kumar resigns,” Ranka said. Ranka alleged that the Assam Assembly constituencies had been redrawn to provide an electoral advantage to Sarma.

“The Assembly constituency boundaries were redrawn in Assam so that Himanta Biswa Sarma could win the election here,” he alleged. He further questioned the Election Commission over the delimitation exercise and the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

The CJP has been campaigning against Kumar over alleged irregularities in the electoral-roll revision process. The organisation had earlier given the CEC a 48-hour deadline to resign and threatened nationwide protests if he failed to do so.

The controversy comes amid reports of differences within the three-member Election Commission over aspects of electoral-roll management and the SIR exercise. The Election Commission has rejected suggestions of an institutional breakdown, maintaining that differences and internal checks are part of the functioning of a multi-member constitutional body.

Ranka also alleged that the electoral process had deprived crores of voters of their rights and demanded greater transparency from the poll panel. These allegations have not been independently established.

The CJP’s October 2 protest plan has also run into a hurdle in Mumbai, where police have reportedly denied permission for the proposed demonstration. CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke has warned of a possible “Jail Bharo Andolan” if the organisation is prevented from holding the protest.

Ranka was recently detained along with several CJP leaders and volunteers in Guwahati ahead of a planned regional meeting. He was subsequently released and said the detention would not deter the organisation from pursuing its campaign.