Large number of protesters gather in New Delhi's Jantar Mantar, demand election Chief's resignation Protesters are calling for Gyanesh Kumar to step down amid allegations that voter rolls have been manipulated Police tighten security, saying permission to hold the protest had not been granted India Click here In other news from India PM Modi speaks with Flydubai captain Smit Machchhar Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Friday spoke with Flydubai Captain Smit Machchhar who was injured in an alleged mid-air attack on a flight from Dubai to Tel Aviv, lauding him for his bravery and presence of mind. A video of the conversation, posted on the PM's social media, showed the bandaged captain briefing Modi about the incident and about what gave him the courage to confront the attacking co-pilot.

"I was trying to save my own life, but I knew I could not let all those people die," Machchhar said during a call from his hospital bed.

Flydubai passengers recount terror after hijacking attempt To view this video, and India trade minister meets counterparts on sidelines of G20 event India's commerce minister Piyush Goyal met with his counterparts from France, Canada, Saudi Arabia and South Korea to discuss furthering bilateral trade, at a time when India is looking to diversify away from the United States.

The meetings were held on the sidelines of the G20 Trade Ministers' Meeting in Milwaukee. At the same G20 event, US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said he did not think there was "something imminent" on the trade deal with India, News agency PTI reported. pending trade deal between New Delhi and Washington has been in a stalemate over threat of new tariffs, sunset clauses and possibly India's use of Russian oil Greer and Goyal met on Wednesday and said they had a "productive discussion" on the conclusion of an interim trade agreement.

British activist released from Delhi after 9 years in prison British-Sikh activist Jagtar Singh Johal was released from a prison in Delhi on Thursday after the Indian high court warned the government it would be found in contempt of court. Johal had been in jail for nine years without trial.

The court had ordered Johal's release on September 18 and later warned the government against continued attempts to keep him imprisoned. Johal was detained on charges of terrorism and targeted killings, and has been a point of diplomatic tensions between India and the UK.

While he was acquitted of one terrorism-linked charge in March 2025, eight other charges remain.

Election body orders 'special drive' to enroll 'left out' voters The Election Commission of India has directed 20 of India's states and union territories to conduct a "special drive" to enroll voters who were "left out" during the controversial revision of electoral rolls. The ECI posted the order, dated October 1, on X on Friday. "Voter enrollment is a continuous process and any person not yet enrolled in the electoral roll or whose name has got deleted can apply for enrollment at any point of time. The objective of the special drive is to identify and facilitate such electors," the order said.

This comes amid increasing scrutiny of the controversial revision of polling lists and protests in central Delhi over the scale of voters deleted from electoral rolls.

Police deploys water cannons, tear gas at protest site Protesters began arriving near the heavily barricaded grounds of Jantar Mantar in central Delhi early on Friday morning. DW reporters on the ground witnessed police detaining people, seemingly at random.

Around 11:15 a.m. local time (0545 GMT), a large rally led by the Students' Federation of India (SFI) reached the site. The SFI is a leftist students' body, which, along with others, has been demanding Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar's ouster.

Protesters clashed with the police as authorities tried to block the road leading to Jantar Mantar. Water cannons and tear-gas shell launchers were deployed at the scene, although they have not yet been used. How does this related to Narendra Modi's BJP?

The protests against CEC Gyanesh Kumar are partially being viewed as renewed pressure on Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government.

The reason behind it may not be immediately obvious since the Election Commission of India (ECI) is meant to be an independent body. But this might help: Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi, along with Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, comprise the Election Commission of India. They are responsible for overseeing elections and related projects such as the SIR exercise, which is meant to remove redundancies in India's electoral rolls.

Opposition leaders and critics have argued that those struck off in the exercise include a heavy proportion of minority voters and that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's BJP is using it as a tool to secure future electoral wins. They have also accused ECI chief Kumar of doing the central government's bidding even though the institute is meant to maintain its independence.

The BJP has dismissed those claims, arguing that those removed largely involve dead voters and illegal infiltrators, thereby protecting India's democracy.

Moreover, a 2023 law introduced by the Modi government changed the way the ECI Chief was appointed, giving the government a greater say. Critics have questioned Kumar's credibility and ability to stay independent given the government's heavy role in his appointment. Why are people protesting?

Pressure on Kumar intensified in September after the newspaper reported that two of the three election commissioners had formally raised concerns over aspects of the Special Intensive Revisions (SIR) at least 14 times over the past 10 months.

The objections relate to new voter registrations, deletion and restoration of voters in the rolls, filing of appeals against orders restoring voters in the SIR process and the custody and security of the entire electoral roll itself, the report said.

In one of the objections, Sandhu complained that the Election Commission acted against the written advice of two commissioners and claimed its action was "unauthorized and illegal." The Election Commission had dismissed concerns of an internal rift, saying differing views were a "normal" part of deliberations and that all its actions were lawful.

Over 130 million Indian voters have been struck off the draft voters list across 30 states and union territories, the report said, putting the ECI in the middle of a national debate over who votes and who doesn't.

Protesters gather in Jantar Mantar to demand Gyanesh Kumar's resignation amid heavy security Thousands of protesters, activists, opposition members and student bodies are expected to gather in central Delhi's iconic Jantar Mantar grounds today to demand the resignation of India's Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

The protest is the latest escalation in growing scrutiny of the poll-governing body of the largest democracy in the world — long regarded as one of the country's most trusted independent institutions.

Political pressure group Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) will not be demonstrating in New Delhi today, according to a clarification posted on X earlier this week. The group is, however, scheduled to hold a rally against Kumar in Mumbai on Friday, and plans to take the demonstrations nationwide in the coming days.

Visuals coming out of central Delhi showed heavy police and security deployment. Several entry points to the grounds have been barricaded, and authorities have imposed a prohibitory order under Indian law, according to news agency ANI.

Under this order, public meetings, assemblies of five or more people, processions, sloganeering, demonstrations and making speeches without permission are prohibited.

Incidentally, today is the birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi, informally known as the "father of the nation." Gandhi is known for his non violent demonstrations, marches and hunger strikes, contributing to British India's freedom movement against colonial rule and ultimately leading to India's independence in 1947. Welcome to our coverage! Hello, and welcome to DW's India blog! This is Mahima from Studio Delhi, where the thermometer is beginning to dip with every passing day.

But the heat is still on in the national capital, with protesters gathering at the iconic Jantar Mantar grounds in central Delhi. These are the same grounds which acted as the base for the Cockroach movement a few months ago, leading to the ouster of India's then education minister Now, the Chief of India's Election Commission under fire with protesters demanding his resignation over his role in a controversial revision of electoral rolls which reportedly led to deletion of over 130 million voters across 30 states and union territories.

Authorities have beefed up security in the area, and several metro stations have been shut to limit public access. Stay tuned!