A dispute over Delhi Durga Puja loudspeaker timings has intensified in CR Park after the Dakshin Palli Durga Puja Samiti asked Lieutenant Governor Taranjit Singh Sandhu to allow sound systems to operate until midnight, while South Delhi Police said its intervention was limited to enforcing court rules on noise pollution.
The puja committee said no order had been issued this year permitting the use of loudspeakers beyond the 11pm limit. In an appeal to the Lieutenant Governor, it said the absence of an extension had created confusion and resentment among organisers and devotees as cultural programmes continued during the festival.
“For many years, LG’s office has been allowing us to use sound systems till midnight during Durga Puja. This year, as no such order has been issued, the concerned authorities are forcing us to end our cultural functions at 11 pm,” the samiti said in its appeal.
The committee requested permission to continue sound systems until midnight, arguing that puja samitis had already booked established artistes from Kolkata and Mumbai for cultural programmes. Its request places the timing of festival events at the centre of a wider administrative question: how temporary cultural activities in residential neighbourhoods are regulated when organisers, police and residents must follow noise-control requirements.
South Delhi Police rejected the committee’s account of the enforcement action in a post on X. The Deputy Commissioner of Police, South Delhi, said police intervention was intended only to ensure compliance with court rules on noise pollution. The police said organisers had continued playing loud music beyond the permitted time despite agreeing to follow the rules during earlier meetings.
“Police intervention is only to ensure court rules on noise pollution. The organisers kept playing loud music past the permitted time, despite agreeing to the rules in earlier meetings,” the DCP said. The police added that it was committed to safe festivities and urged everyone to cooperate.
The competing statements indicate that the immediate disagreement is not only about whether an extension should be granted, but also about whether the existing 11pm limit was being followed. The committee’s appeal refers to earlier years when it said the Lieutenant Governor’s office had allowed sound systems to continue until midnight. Police, however, said the current intervention followed breaches of the permitted timing and earlier undertakings by organisers.
For residents and festival organisers, the dispute highlights the practical difficulty of managing cultural programmes in a dense urban neighbourhood. Event schedules, artist bookings and public celebrations operate alongside rules intended to limit exposure to noise. Any change in the permitted timing would therefore require an administrative order, while enforcement remains with the concerned authorities.
The supplied report does not indicate that the Lieutenant Governor’s office has granted the requested extension. For now, the South Delhi Police position remains that it is enforcing the permitted timings and applicable court rules on noise pollution, while the puja committee continues to seek permission for programmes to run until midnight.
