Delhi Police deployed around 3,500 women personnel, including officers from Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, across central Delhi on October 10 to manage protests and prevent demonstrators from marching towards Jantar Mantar.
The personnel were stationed along Ashoka Road, Jantar Mantar Road, Janpath, Connaught Place and Kharak Singh Marg, according to Delhi Police data reported by The Hindu. Buses carrying women police personnel moved between the locations as officers manned barricades, negotiated with protesters, directed citizens and carried out detentions.
The deployment was visible from the morning, when women officers approached leaders of the Cockroach Janta Party aboard a flight from Mumbai before their detention. On the streets, women personnel took the lead in engaging with demonstrators, including young men, while male officers largely remained in the background.
At the entrance to Jantar Mantar near Connaught Place, an officer said the police had been instructed to ensure that protesters and journalists did not enter the area. The officer said personnel were assigned to prevent crowding, speak to those seeking access and stop them from entering the premises.
The restrictions also affected movement around Bangla Sahib Gurdwara, where protesters repeatedly sought shelter to evade detention. Women officers negotiated with demonstrators and the gurdwara management during a standoff that lasted several hours. Protesters later emerged with banners and slogans before being chased by the police. Women demonstrators were escorted away by women personnel.
An officer stationed near gate number 4 of the gurdwara said women personnel had been instructed to remain firm but calm and persuade protesters to comply with the restrictions. The deployment placed women officers at the centre of crowd-control operations across several high-footfall areas of central Delhi, where protest restrictions can affect commuters, visitors, businesses and religious institutions.
The move followed allegations of misconduct during earlier protests. A woman journalist had accused Assistant Commissioner of Police Vivek Bhagat of sexual harassment and manhandling. Videos circulating online also purportedly showed male police personnel assaulting women protesters. The allegations and videos were presented in the report as part of the context for the deployment; the supplied report does not establish the outcome of any inquiry or legal proceedings.
The police operation involved both prevention and negotiation, with officers regulating access to Jantar Mantar, monitoring movement near Connaught Place and Bangla Sahib, and detaining or escorting protesters from restricted areas. The report did not specify how many people were detained, the duration of the restrictions or the formal order under which the deployment was made.
