Delhi Police detained Cockroach Janta Party founder Abhijeet Dipke, All India Students’ Association president Neha Bora and other protesters on Friday as supporters attempted to march towards Connaught Place with the national flag, amid intensified security arrangements in central Delhi.
Mr. Dipke was detained outside the residence where he was staying in Delhi while he was leaving to participate in the proposed ‘Lehra Do Tiranga’ protest, according to a spokesperson for the group. AISA leaders and other protesters were detained near Mandi House circle after they began moving towards Connaught Place with the tricolour.
Police personnel tried to stop the group as it moved forward. Separately, a group led by the Students’ Federation of India was stopped at the Janpath-Tolstoy Marg intersection, a route leading towards Jantar Mantar.
The police action came as the New Delhi area saw heightened security ahead of the proposed march. The Hindu reported that 6,000 police personnel had been deployed and that Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita had been imposed in the area. The provision restricts the assembly and movement of people when authorities consider such measures necessary to prevent disruption or a threat to public order.
Delhi Police personnel had earlier visited Mr. Dipke and served him a notice directing him to refrain from any action that could prejudice the rights of citizens, traders, commuters, patients and others. The notice placed the proposed protest within a wider public-access and traffic-management framework, as central Delhi remains a high-footfall zone containing commercial areas, public institutions and major transport links.
The New Delhi Municipal Council said Central Park would remain closed to the public on October 16 and 17 for administrative reasons. The park is located in the Connaught Place area, where the proposed march was expected to draw protesters and require additional security and access controls.
The call for the protest followed the remand of CJP co-conveners Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka to five days of judicial custody on October 14. They were allegedly remanded for entering Jantar Mantar, according to the report. The proposed march was announced after that development.
The events illustrate how demonstrations in central Delhi can quickly affect the management of public spaces, roads and pedestrian movement beyond the immediate protest site. Police deployment, restrictions on assembly and the temporary closure of a prominent public park were undertaken alongside efforts to prevent the groups from reaching Connaught Place and Jantar Mantar.
The immediate administrative measures in place include the Section 163 restrictions, the Central Park closure through October 17 and continued police deployment around the affected central Delhi routes. The report did not provide details of the release status of those detained or of any further permissions for the proposed march.
