New Delhi Enters "Emergency-Level" Alert: Tens of Thousands of Protesters Detained as U.S. Simultaneously Tightens Green Card Channels for Indian IT Industry

New Delhi is being transformed into a militarized exclusion zone. According to Deutsche Welle, less than 24 hours before the mass protest scheduled for October 10 by the "Cockroach People's Party" (CJP), Indian Railways has cancelled all mail and express trains arriving at New Delhi and Nizamuddin stations between 4 a.m. and 2 p.m. that day; police have reportedly proposed closing entry and exit gates at 57 metro stations across the capital and deploying more than 20,000 police and paramilitary personnel throughout the city. Delhi police have invoked Section 163 of the Code of Criminal Procedure to impose a ban across the entire territory, prohibiting all assemblies and protests.

The scale of repression far exceeds routine stability maintenance. Deutsche Welle notes that CJP co-convener Ashutosh Ranka claims that on October 8 alone, at least 10,000 people were detained across India. Founder Abhijeet Dipke alleges that volunteers from Telangana were taken off trains in Bhopal by Madhya Pradesh police, and students from Pune were put on buses headed to unknown destinations. Police have so far issued no statement regarding the alleged detentions.

The trigger is the 130 million names deleted from the voter rolls. The "Special Intensive Revision" (SIR) overseen by the Election Commission has reportedly removed approximately 130 million records, with the opposition accusing the move of being designed to systematically exclude minorities and marginalized voters. Dipke told ANI: "Did they seek permission before deleting 130 million votes? If we don't protest those who rig elections, what are we supposed to do? A country cannot function this way." Delhi Police Deputy Commissioner Nupur Prasad rejected the application on the grounds of "insufficient notice" and "prior violations"; Dipke retorted: "Jantar Mantar is a designated protest site. Article 19 of the Constitution guarantees the fundamental right to protest. Why must prior permission be obtained?"

CJP spokesperson Saurav Das wrote on social media: "Hello, India. We are under emergency." In India, the word "emergency" is not rhetorical — in 1975, Indira Gandhi declared a national emergency; within 21 months, civil liberties were frozen, the opposition was subjected to mass imprisonment, and the media faced censorship. Modi and the BJP have historically characterized that period as India's "darkest chapter." Now the same term is being borrowed to describe New Delhi in 2026, and the history this government once condemned is being replicated.

Opposition Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was briefly detained for two consecutive days earlier this week alongside colleagues, after which he submitted a memorandum to President Droupadi Murmu demanding the resignation of Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. After the meeting, Gandhi said: "I was shocked that the President did not deny 'vote theft' (Vote Chori). She asked us to bring evidence — we will bring a mountain of it."

At almost the same time, Washington rolled out a separate pressure mechanism. According to Deutsche Welle, the U.S. Department of Labor has suspended eight major tech companies, including Infosys, Tata, Wipro and HCL, from participating in the "Permanent Labor Certification Program" (PERM). Labor Secretary Keith Sonderling stated: "I am hereby suspending the permanent labor certification eligibility of some of the world's largest IT outsourcing companies — Cognizant, Infosys, Tata, Wipro, HCL, and Capgemini." Indian applicants received nearly 70 percent of H-1B visa approvals in fiscal year 2025; the suspension is allegedly based on undisclosed federal investigations.

New Delhi reacted swiftly. India's Ministry of External Affairs statement noted that the suspension decision "does not advance the shared ambitions of New Delhi and Washington," and sharply criticized Vice President Vance's characterization of H-1B holders as "indentured servants," stating that "the use of language carrying painful historical and colonial connotations is deeply offensive" — and the term colonial legacy carries considerable weight in historical context.

The two mechanisms overlapped within the same week. On one side, a sovereign state is internally deploying emergency-law-level instruments, squeezing the right to protest guaranteed by Article 19 of the Constitution into a privilege requiring administrative approval; on the other, a major power is using visa and green card mechanisms to conduct targeted suppression against workers in another country's pillar industry, while that country's vice president goes so far as to describe visa holders as "indentured servants." Among the 130 million names already removed by SIR, the political leanings and composition of affected voters lack independent verification; the CJP's claim of 10,000 detentions nationwide has yet to be confirmed or denied by any police force; the nature and final conclusions of the U.S. "ongoing federal investigation" have likewise not been disclosed. A triple uncertainty exists simultaneously, while the right to investigate the investigation itself has already been locked out at the door.