The Delhi High Court on Thursday declined to restrain the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) and its founder Abhijeet Dipke from holding a protest at Central Park in Connaught Place on October 16, leaving the Delhi Police responsible for regulating the gathering and addressing concerns raised by traders and vendors.
A bench of Acting Chief Justice Nitin Wasudeo Sambre and Justice Sanjay Sharma heard a petition filed by a licensed street vendor from Palika Bazar, who sought directions to the police to regulate the proposed protest. The petitioner’s counsel argued that Connaught Place was not a designated protest site and that an agitation at Central Park could affect business in the area, particularly during the festive season.
The counsel submitted that traders and vendors could be left “on the streets” if another weekend was lost to closures caused by protests in central Delhi. The petition also referred to the expected impact on commercial activity during the Dussehra weekend and alleged that parts of Connaught Place had already begun shutting down in anticipation of the gathering.
The protest was announced by Mr. Dipke on October 14. According to the report before the court, he called on people to gather at Central Park with the national flag under the banner of a national “Lehra Do Tiranga” demonstration. The protest was intended to highlight the detention of CJP members Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, whom Mr. Dipke alleged had been jailed for unfurling the tricolour.
Mr. Das and Mr. Ranka were sent to five days’ judicial custody for allegedly violating their peace bonds and trespassing into Jantar Mantar, which has been denotified as a protest site. The case comes amid demonstrations demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and restrictions imposed in Delhi to prevent people from joining those protests, according to statements cited in the report.
During Thursday’s hearing, Additional Solicitor General Chetan Sharma told the court that steps had been taken to control the CJP’s activities and assured the bench that the petitioner’s concerns would be addressed. When the petitioner’s counsel sought a specific direction restraining the CJP so that a contempt plea could be filed in case of a violation, the bench said it had passed its order and asked the counsel not to insist.
The court’s decision does not remove the operational responsibilities facing the police. Authorities will have to manage the gathering while protecting access to businesses, pedestrian movement and roads around Connaught Place. The petitioner’s counsel also referred to Supreme Court rulings in the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan and Shaheen Bagh cases, which held that protests cannot block traffic, office gates or arterial roads.
The protest is scheduled for October 16 at Central Park. The Delhi Police has assured the court that it will take all possible steps to regulate and control the protesters and address the concerns raised by the Connaught Place vendor.
