Delhi Metro station closures and restrictions on trains reaching the national capital are set to affect commuters on 10 October, ahead of a planned protest by the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) at Jantar Mantar. The reported measures include the closure of entry and exit gates at 57 metro stations and the cancellation of 38 trains arriving at New Delhi and Hazrat Nizamuddin railway stations.
The CJP is organising the protest over alleged irregularities in the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls and is demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. Party leaders have criticised the security arrangements and restrictions on public transport, describing them as excessive and comparable to the conditions imposed during the Emergency.
According to the report, Delhi Metro stations including Rajiv Chowk, New Delhi, Central Secretariat, Patel Chowk and Kashmere Gate will have their entry and exit gates closed from 9 pm on Friday until further orders. The restrictions are linked to security arrangements ahead of the proposed demonstration at Jantar Mantar, where the Delhi Police has reportedly denied permission for the protest.
The railway restrictions are scheduled to operate between 4 am and 2 pm on 10 October. Thirty-eight mail and express trains arriving at New Delhi and Hazrat Nizamuddin stations from different states are reported to have been cancelled. Train services at other railway stations in Delhi are expected to continue normally, according to the report.
The transport restrictions became a central point of criticism for CJP leaders. Party founder Abhijeet Dipke, speaking to reporters at Mumbai airport after returning from Bengaluru, said the party’s workers would proceed with the planned protest. He questioned the decision to restrict metro, railway and road movement while citing public inconvenience as a reason for limiting demonstrations.
Dipke also criticised the deployment of security forces and challenged the government to arrest him if it believed that such action was necessary. CJP leader Saurav Das alleged that party workers were being detained or placed under house arrest in states governed by the Bharatiya Janata Party. These claims were made by the party leaders and were not independently established in the supplied report.
The Supreme Court has also intervened in the dispute over transport restrictions. A bench comprising Chief Justice Suryakant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V. Mohana directed the Centre and the concerned authorities not to completely shut down Delhi Metro and train services because of the protest. The court said services could be controlled but should continue rather than being brought to a complete halt.
The ruling places the authorities under an obligation to balance security arrangements around Jantar Mantar with the continuity of essential public transport. The immediate operational question is how the reported station and train restrictions will be implemented while complying with the Supreme Court’s direction that transport services remain available in a controlled manner.
