MUMBAI, Oct. 25 -- Responding to a knock on her door at 10:15am on Thursday, Bandra-based Natasha Pareira was shocked to face three police personnel - two men and a woman - dressed in plain clothes at her doorstep. Claiming to be from Bandra police station's Intelligence Unit, they promptly proceeded to verify her name and asked whether she was going to attend a protest to be held at Mumbai University's Kalina campus at 1pm on Friday demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar amid allegations of mishandling the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. The protest was called by the Disha Students' Organisation, an independent youth movement. "Apart from the three cops, one police van was parked beneath my building and another one around five meters away," said Pareira, who had attended the Cockroach Janta Party's (CJP) October 2 protest at Shivaji Park, and another one on October 11 at Dadar, where she met members of Disha. "As I became uncomfortable with the questioning by the men, I asked my fiance Shringar Mascarenhas to communicate with them. They refused to leave despite my assurances that I had no plans to attend the Kalina protest," said Pariera. Mascarenhas intervened, emphasising that their line of questioning was bordering on harassment. "The policemen then told me that they were here because we were protesting against the government. But I clarified that the Election Commission is an independent body," said Mascarenhas. "They eventually left after both of us reiterated that we were not joining the protest. This was only an attempt to intimidate us." Both Pareira and Mascarenhas are social activists. This is not an isolated case. Many citizens of Mumbai have had to undergo a similar line of interrogation by Mumbai police in the last 15 days. On Sunday, Sahil Parsekar, a marketing professional with a private firm, was allegedly detained by the police for over 13 hours at the Bandra police station based on a tip-off that he was going to join the protest organised by Disha at Carter Road the same afternoon. "The police tracked me down at my friend's house, which was barricaded, with 10 policemen and policewomen standing on guard. They did not let anyone leave the premises till 1.30pm," said Parsekar. When he called his lawyer to reason with the police, they took him to the police station to allegedly detain him for 13 hours. "I could not attend the protest," said Parsekar, who however made it to the Kalina protest on Friday. "We co-operated with the police for Friday's a peaceful protest," said Parsekar, who was a volunteer at the October 2 and October 11 protests. "Earlier, while in detention, I was not even allowed to see my lawyer. They let me go only when Tiger Shroff was shot and the police personnel had to rush to the spot," he added. Over 900 individuals-including students, activists, senior citizens, and prominent figures like Tushar Gandhi-faced alleged unlawful detentions and police assault after being traced via mobile phone numbers during demonstrations demanding the resignation of Gyanesh Kumar. Detainees reported heavy-handed tactics near August Kranti Maidan, Nana Chowk, and Shivaji Park. Amir Kazi, an All India Student Federation member, stated he was manhandled by 15 officers on October 11 while walking to Byculla, requiring a walking stick for his injuries. Despite not attending the August Kranti Maidan protest, Kazi was named in an October 10 FIR alongside Gandhi and lawyer Samya Korde. He noted police frame these detentions casually as a "meet-and-greet." Civil society members Feroze Mithiborwala and Salim Saboowala from Hum Bharat Ke Log were detained at home by MIDC police on October 8, aborting their trip to a joint protest in Delhi. Mithiborwala criticised these repeated arbitrary summons and prolonged detentions as clear infringements on fundamental rights to freedom of movement and peaceful assembly under Article 19 of the Indian Constitution. "Both of us have been repeatedly targeted with arbitrary summons and prolonged detentions - a clear infringement on our fundamental rights to freedom of movement and peaceful assembly guaranteed under Article 19 of the Constitution of India," said Mithiborwala. Korde reported that police visited her Wadala residence on October 11, instructing her to stay put due to alleged objectionable social media posts. Despite offering assurances, she was detained, served a notice, and harassed for her activism. Many social activists, who did not wish to be named, claimed that in the last 15 days, police officers have visited homes of young protesters and called them directly, instructing them to stay indoors and warning them not to attend demonstrations. Protesters have also reported about being pressured or asked by police to share their live GPS locations during ongoing unrest or after being booked. Activists associated with various student and political groups (such as the CJP and Mumbai Against Suppression of Students) have allegedly faced searches, WhatsApp legal notices, and station transfers. Responding to the allegations, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Bandra) Mohitkumar Garg categorised these actions as routine check-ups based on oral complaints, specifically citing unauthorised gatherings in Kalina....