The Delhi High Court on Thursday declined to restrain the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) and its founder Abhijeet Dipke from holding a protest at Connaught Place on Friday, while recording Delhi Police’s assurance that it would take all possible legal measures to regulate the gathering.
The court was hearing a petition filed by Anil Kumar Gupta, a Palika Bazar street vendor, who sought an order preventing protests in Connaught Place and other parts of central Delhi. The plea cited the potential for traffic disruption, business losses and an impact on the livelihoods of traders and street vendors.
Delhi Police told the court that steps had been taken to regulate the proposed protest and assured the bench that all possible measures would be taken in accordance with the law. The court recorded the assurance and listed the matter for November 3.
The petition sought directions restraining the CJP from holding any agitation, demonstration, march or gathering at Central Park in Connaught Place, or at any other location that is not a designated protest venue. The matter was mentioned before a bench led by Acting Chief Justice Nitin W Sambre by senior advocate Sacchin Puri, who argued that the protest could disrupt normal life, create severe traffic bottlenecks and cause financial losses for shop owners in central Delhi.
Dipke has called for people to assemble at Central Park at 5pm on Friday with the national flag. The proposed gathering follows the arrest and remand of CJP leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka. The two leaders were sent to five days of judicial custody after being arrested along with party activist Ajinkya Shinde for allegedly entering Jantar Mantar without authorisation.
Jantar Mantar was recently denotified as a designated venue for protests. In a video posted on X, Dipke urged people outside Delhi to organise similar Tricolour marches in their cities, saying the gatherings would demonstrate that waving the national flag was not a crime.
The court’s decision leaves the proposed Connaught Place protest subject to regulation by the police rather than an immediate judicial restraint. The next hearing in the matter is scheduled for November 3.
