Imagine arriving in a big city to share your ideas, only to have officers stop you right away. That is what happened in India when a group called the Cockroach Janta Party tried to hold a peaceful protest in Delhi. People gathered to speak up about jobs and fair voting rules across the country.
Trouble started very quickly when party leader Abhijeet Dipke landed at the local airport. Officers stepped in immediately and put him into custody before he could even reach the street. Across the capital, thousands of officers set up heavy metal fences on the roads to stop other citizens from marching together. When crowds tried to walk forward, officers grabbed them and pushed them inside city transport vehicles. People inside were full of anger because they could not make their voices heard. Many banged hard on the glass windows of each bus to show their frustration. The group got its unusual name earlier this year when a judge made a harsh comment about young people who do not have work. Those citizens took that strange insult and turned it into a symbol for their own political group. Today, they worry that changes to the national election list might hurt their basic voting rights. The local police insisted that the gathering was not allowed, while government officials stated that all voting rules remain fair and balanced.
When you see citizens marching in public, you see how much fair rules mean to everyday people. This Delhi protest shows that citizens will keep speaking out whenever they feel ignored.
