Delhi Police is facing renewed questions over its handling of women’s safety and public demonstrations after the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) shared images of women carrying “AM I NEXT?” banners ahead of its proposed October 10 protest at Jantar Mantar. The party has questioned whether authorities are treating a peaceful demonstration as a greater law-and-order concern than crimes against women.
In a post on X, the CJP said Delhi Police’s handling of law and order had forced women to carry the banners. It referred to continuing crimes against women in the capital and asked whether a peaceful protest was being treated as more serious than those offences.
The proposed demonstration is intended to demand accountability from Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. Delhi Police has denied permission for the event, citing the late submission of the application, alleged non-compliance with directions during an earlier demonstration, and concerns related to public safety, law and order and traffic management.
The dispute comes after three women journalists alleged sexual harassment by Delhi Police personnel during a protest on October 3. According to the report, their complaints were transferred to the Crime Branch for further action. The allegations have not been established in the material supplied for this report.
The National Human Rights Commission took suo motu cognisance of the journalists’ allegations on October 9 and sought a detailed report from the Delhi Police commissioner within two weeks. The commission’s intervention places the police response under an additional human-rights review while the Crime Branch process continues.
Delhi Police has prepared an extensive security arrangement for the proposed October 10 demonstration. The plan includes barricades, checkpoints and preventive measures across the capital. Nearly 35,000 personnel, including Delhi Police and paramilitary forces, were expected to be deployed because of projections of a large turnout.
The episode places several responsibilities of city administration alongside one another: regulating public assembly, maintaining traffic movement, preventing disorder and ensuring the safety of women participating in or covering demonstrations. The police have cited these operational concerns in denying permission, while the CJP has framed the decision as evidence that authorities are placing disproportionate emphasis on controlling protest.
The immediate official milestones are the proposed demonstration, the Crime Branch’s further action on the journalists’ complaints and the Delhi Police commissioner’s response to the NHRC within two weeks. The supplied report does not state whether the protest will proceed despite the denial of permission or whether the police order will be challenged before a court.
