From CEC’s Removal to Government’s Removal: Prashant Bhushan Says the Quiet Part Out Loud

Metro closures, detentions and now a regime change call: understand how the anti-CEC agitation has escalated

October 15, 2026

Regime Change on the Table: Bhushan’s Remark Puts Anti-CEC Agitation Under Scrutiny

Prashant Bhushan openly backs regime change at an anti-CEC press conference. Here’s what he said and why it has triggered a political storm

Senior advocate Prashant Bhushan has said openly what the BJP has long accused the Opposition of plotting. At a press conference in Delhi on Thursday, he declared that the ongoing protests against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar are aimed at a change of government.

The remark that set off the row

“We all want a regime change. Is there anything wrong with that?” Bhushan said. He added that if what he called “barbarism” continues, there will definitely be a regime change, and that such a government cannot continue. He accused the Modi government of being hell-bent on crushing electoral democracy and of playing with citizens’ fundamental rights.

Bhushan was joined at the press conference by AISA president Neha Bora and CJP activist Abhijit Dipke.

Delhi: Advocate Prashant Bhushan says, “There will definitely be a regime change. We all want a regime change. Is there anything wrong with that?…” https://t.co/vUDowEBAI8
— IANS (@ians_india) October 15, 2026

Protests that go well beyond a demand on the CEC

The government has maintained that the agitation is an Opposition operation for regime change, and Bhushan’s remark gives that charge fresh ammunition. What began as a demand for the removal of one constitutional officer has now been described, by one of its prominent supporters, as a push to remove the government.

The disruption has been real for ordinary Delhiites. Over the past days, dozens of Metro stations were shut, hundreds of trains were cancelled or disrupted, and thousands of passengers missed their journeys. Internet services were suspended in parts of central Delhi, and hundreds of protesters were detained. Police have also said women personnel were assaulted during earlier demonstrations. These are allegations made by the police.

More on the way

The CJP and other organisations have given a call for people to wave the national flag at Central Park in Connaught Place on Saturday. With the AAP also backing the call, it is the next step in the agitation against the CEC.

BJP’s charge

BJP leaders and supporters have also pointed to video clips circulating online, in which Bhushan is said to have spoken of “bloodshed” being possible in a street revolution. They allege that the Opposition is flirting with violence to achieve regime change. The context and authenticity of those clips have not been independently verified.

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