# UN Experts Urge India to End 'Excessive Force' Against Protesters Over Electoral Roll Dispute > A group of independent UN Human Rights Council-appointed experts has called on India to stop using excessive force against protesters, pointing to the policing of October 16 demonstrations over the removal of names from voter rolls. - Source: India Max - Canonical URL: https://indiamax.net/article/un-experts-urge-india-to-end-excessive-force-against-protesters-over-electoral-roll-dispute - Author: India Max Staff - Section: Politics - Published: 2026-10-21T13:15:22.037Z - Updated: 2026-10-21T13:15:22.037Z - Tags: United Nations, Human Rights, Gyanesh Kumar, Protests, Election Commission - Hindi edition: https://indiamax.net/hi/article/un-experts-urge-india-to-end-excessive-force-against-protesters-over-electoral-roll-dispute --- A group of roughly two dozen independent experts appointed by the UN Human Rights Council has called on India to stop using excessive force against protesters, in a statement responding to demonstrations held on October 16 in New Delhi and across the country. The experts urged authorities to end lathi charges, the coordinated use of batons to disperse crowds, lift blanket bans on assembly, stop misusing digital surveillance and biometric data against demonstrators, and end internet disruptions linked to the protests. The October 16 demonstrations were led by the Cockroach Janata Party, opposition parties and student organisations, demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over the removal of roughly 130 million names from voter rolls as part of the Special Intensive Revision process. The UN experts said protesters had sustained injuries during the crackdown and cited reports of ill treatment, including allegations of sexual violence and gender based abuse, as well as accounts of thousands being prevented from joining the demonstrations in the first place. The experts called for an impartial investigation into the conduct of law enforcement agencies during the protests. The Election Commission has defended the roll revision, saying it was intended to remove duplicate and ineligible entries rather than to disenfranchise voters, while India's government dismissed the UN experts' criticism as interference in the country's internal affairs. The exchange adds an international dimension to a dispute that began as a domestic argument over the integrity of India's voter rolls, with the UN's intervention putting pressure on New Delhi to respond to specific allegations about how the October 16 protests, and the days around them, were policed. --- Originally published by India Max. Free to cite with attribution and a link to https://indiamax.net/article/un-experts-urge-india-to-end-excessive-force-against-protesters-over-electoral-roll-dispute.