MONTREAL – A dozen people rallied in downtown Montreal on Monday to express solidarity with protests in India, where thousands of demonstrators who oppose contentious revisions to the country’s voter lists have been detained.
“It’s been very, very painful,” said Bhaskar, who was born in India and moved to Montreal in 2018. Bhaskar asked for his last name not to be published for fear of retaliation from the Indian government.
“There have been some very blatant violations of democratic principles. The government has been disenfranchising people, voters en masse,” he added.
The rally was organized by the South Asian Diaspora Action Collective and the Center for Study and Research in South Asia.
India’s Election Commission has removed more than 130 million names from voter lists in the last few months. With India’s population at close to 1.5 billion, according to UN data, this represents close to 10 per cent of the total population.
Opposition parties and protest groups have said the changes disproportionately erased voters who oppose the party in power. The Indian government has denied these claims.
Among the protesters in Montreal on Monday was Najmi, who used a pseudonym to protect her from reprisals. Born in India, she has lived in Montreal for over 20 years and now watches anxiously as her family faces the political upheaval of her home country.
Government workers have been going door to door, asking people for a list of documents to prove their citizenship, she said, adding that some of her family are waiting to see if they will keep their right to vote.
“People have been holding their breath and waiting for the list (of voters) to come out,” she said.
Najmi believes it’s part of an effort to push out Muslim and Christian people in favour of the Hindu majority.
A youth movement in India known as the Cockroach Janata Party has been leading protests against these changes.
On Saturday, Indian police detained three movement leaders and thousands of protesters in New Delhi. Police released the three leaders on Sunday, and they vowed to continue protesting.
“It’s enraging what happened, and at the same time it’s beautiful how people are rising,” said Najmi.
The protests occur as Canada’s International Trade Minister Maninder Sidhu visits India this week. The two countries are looking to reach a free-trade agreement by the end of the year.
Mark Carney made resetting relations with India a priority after he became prime minister in 2025. He visited Mumbai and New Delhi in March, the first visit by a Canadian prime minister in eight years.
Some protesters in Montreal on Sunday called on the Carney government to cut ties with India in response to the Indian government’s actions.
“There are many reasons for Canada to actually boycott India and have clear demands for human rights for people,” said Najmi.
Veena Gokhale, who left India 32 years ago, said she was worried by how little her Canadian friends knew about the tensions in her home country.
“It really makes me very concerned and very put off. Look at this,” she said, pointing at the handful of protesters at the rally. “This is a huge thing. … People don’t want to engage.”
— With files from Catherine Morrison and The Associated Press
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 12, 2026.
