Delhi protests spread to multiple parts of the capital on Saturday after police and paramilitary forces sealed central Delhi, detained demonstrators and restricted access to the planned gathering at Jantar Mantar. Metro stations, schools, colleges and markets in the area remained closed as barricades and heavy security deployment disrupted movement through the city.
Announcements made from loudspeakers across central Delhi said restrictions under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita were in force and directed citizens to follow police instructions and maintain law and order. Despite the restrictions, hundreds of protesters attempted to reach Jantar Mantar, according to The Hindu, but were stopped, detained and taken in buses to locations on the city’s outskirts.
Youth organisations shifted demonstrations to places including the Safdarjung flyover, Dilli Haat, Raj Ghat and makeshift detention centres in north-west Delhi. Larger groups of 100 to 200 people gathered under different organisational banners, while smaller groups, including women and children, attempted to move towards the planned protest site. Police stopped the groups and placed them inside buses, the report said.
At the Safdarjung flyover, people tried to prevent a bus carrying detainees, including All India Students’ Association president Neha Bora, from leaving. Some protesters stood or sat in front of the vehicle, while others lay on the road. The police pushed them away and used batons, according to the report. Protesters also alleged that some police personnel were in plain clothes and that several officers were not wearing name tags.
A 15-year-old protester from Goa, who had travelled to Delhi with her younger brother and father, alleged that police personnel pulled and manhandled detainees. The Hindu also reported claims from Chiranshu, a member of the Revolutionary Workers’ Party of India, that protesters were thrown onto the pavement, that one person suffered a twisted leg and that women were pushed and pulled inside a bus. The injured person was reportedly admitted to a private hospital in Rohini. These accounts were allegations made by protesters and were not independently established in the supplied report.
At about 1 p.m., members of the Disha Students’ Organisation, Naujawan Bharat Sabha and RWPI held a protest at Raj Ghat, where more than 150 people gathered. They continued their demonstration inside buses after being taken to Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in Bawana, more than 30 km from Jantar Mantar. The protesters discussed alleged irregularities by the Election Commission of India and sang protest songs, the report said.
Members of the Students’ Federation of India organised a public lecture at the Bawana detention centre on what they described as an “undeclared Emergency”. The speaker, retired Jamia Millia Islamia professor R. Gopinath, was also detained along with students. At Nangloi, Rajya Sabha member A.A. Rahim announced “Jantar Mantar 2.0”, began a hunger strike and demanded action against Inspector Pawan Tomar over alleged misbehaviour with women students. He also sought the return of phones and bags that protesters alleged had been taken by the police.
Police officers claimed that they too suffered injuries to their arms and legs while detaining protesters. At least 12 people, including Indian Youth Congress members and two advocates, were detained from Raisina Road on Saturday morning and had not been released by late night, according to The Hindu. Several UPSC aspirants and an autorickshaw driver also said they were detained despite not intending to join the protest. The restrictions and detentions continued to affect access to central Delhi as authorities maintained the security arrangements around Jantar Mantar.
