Young protesters in New Delhi are using improvised tactics, from Batman masks to offline maps, to evade one of the capital’s toughest security crackdowns and keep their demonstrations alive. Tens of thousands of security personnel have been deployed to block the main protest site at Jantar Mantar. In response, protesters have staged flash demonstrations elsewhere in the city, catching authorities off guard.
Reports of thousands of detentions emerged during weekend demonstrations in the capital, but many of those held have since been released. The protesters say they remain undeterred. They want the head of India’s election commission to resign, accusing the body of manipulating voter rolls to benefit Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ruling party. The constitutional body has denied the accusation.
Volunteers track detainees with WhatsApp groups and drivers
Meghnad S., a 36-year-old content creator, is leading a volunteer effort that works like a crowd-sourced rescue service. His group of about 170 people spent the weekend tracking police vehicles using little more than smartphones. Once volunteers learned where detainees had been taken, the information was entered into a digital dashboard that matched each case with a volunteer driver.
Meghnad said the group uses a WhatsApp chat to find available drivers and check what vehicle they have and whether it is stocked with food, water and fuel. Sometimes a doctor joins the ride. The aim, he said, is to have medical help on hand in case detainees need it.
Neha Bora’s lookalike and chases through the streets
Student leader Neha Bora became a viral figure after a case of mistaken identity led police to detain her lookalike. The real Bora, 29, reportedly slipped through the security cordon and ran towards central Delhi before she was eventually detained. She later posted a photograph of herself with her doppelganger, joking that the resemblance was “pure coincidence, not strategy.”
Bora was not the only one who outpaced officers. Police were also seen struggling to catch up with fast-moving young protesters on the streets. One protester told reporters that the officers “have big bellies, they can’t run,” adding that they “pant after running just 50 metres.” In other scenes, demonstrators held on to one another as they were dragged towards waiting buses, only to wriggle out through the driver’s seat or the rear window.
Some demonstrators wore Batman masks to avoid being identified. Earlier in the protests, Delhi had shut metro stations and restricted traffic as opposition marches targeted the election chief.
Richa Chadha urges protesters to use make-up
Bollywood actress Richa Chadha offered her own advice on avoiding detention. On Sunday, she filmed herself drawing on her face with make-up. She wrote on social media that because protesters were being filmed without their consent, they could use make-up to dodge surveillance and facial recognition cameras.
