NEW DELHI: The CPI(M) on Friday condemned the detention of hundreds of youngsters, including students, who gathered at Jantar Mantar here demanding the immediate ouster of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar and a halt to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral roll.
The Left party said the Delhi Police had "converted the entire city into a fortress" and detained anyone approaching Jantar Mantar after denying permission for a gathering at the designated protest site.
Despite the restrictions, hundreds of youngsters and students, led by the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI), the Students' Federation of India (SFI) and other student and youth organisations, gathered at the site, the party's Politburo said in a statement.
"The police brutally manhandled the protesters and threw them into the buses, injuring many," the Communist Party of India (Marxist) alleged, adding that it took more than two hours for the security personnel to detain all the DYFI and SFI activists, which it said "demonstrates the stiff resistance put up by the youth".
CPI(M) general secretary M A Baby and veteran party leader Brinda Karat were detained, along with DYFI general secretary Himagnaraj Bhattacharya, DYFI president and Rajya Sabha member A A Rahim, SFI general secretary Srijan Bhattacharya, SFI president Adarsh M Saji and SFI joint secretary and former Jawaharlal Nehru Students' Union (JNUSU) president Aishe Ghosh, the party said.
The statement came after more than 700 people, including Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leaders and members of various student organisations, were detained by the Delhi Police at Jantar Mantar and surrounding areas during the protest against the CEC.
Earlier in the day, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Manoj Jha, social activist Yogendra Yadav and activist Nikhil Dey, AISA president Neha and activists of the CPI(ML) Liberation were among those detained while trying to reach Jantar Mantar.
The CPI(M) alleged that the denial of permission to protest at Jantar Mantar amounted to an attempt to curtail the constitutional right to agitate.
"Under the BJP-led Union government, democratic rights are being drastically curtailed, and the denial of permission to protest, even at Jantar Mantar -- the designated site for protest -- demonstrates how intolerant this government has become," it said.
The party alleged that Kumar was "instrumental in converting the ECI into a back office of the BJP's election work" and demanded his immediate ouster.
"The CPI(M) demands the immediate ouster of CEC, halt to the SIR and release of all the detained protesters," the statement said.
The party also congratulated the youngsters, students and others who participated in the protest despite the restrictions.
"The movement to save democracy, and for the neutrality of State institutions such as the ECI will continue," it said, appealing to people to "strengthen this ongoing struggle by joining in large numbers".