A planned Delhi protest on October 10 has divided residents as police enforce prohibitory orders around Jantar Mantar and appeal to citizens not to join the gathering, while youth and community organisations continue door-to-door mobilisation over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
The police have invoked Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023, in the New Delhi area. The provision allows an Executive Magistrate, including a District Magistrate or Commissioner of Police, to issue urgent temporary orders to maintain public order, prevent danger or restrict unlawful assemblies.
Police personnel have been deployed near Jantar Mantar Road following a protest by INDIA bloc MPs against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. Officials have also held meetings in colleges, universities and paying guest accommodations, asking students and residents not to participate in what they described as an unsanctioned protest that could disrupt law and order.
Police teams visited mosques and marketplaces in Old Delhi and used loudspeakers to announce that Section 163 was in force. At Baghwali Masjid in Chandni Chowk on October 8, a police official asked residents not to respond to provocative messages, avoid unnecessary crowds and cooperate with the administration.
The restrictions have created uncertainty among traders and residents in central Delhi. Salauddeen, president of the Matia Mahal Traders’ Organisation, said police had told shopkeepers and young people not to join the protest. He also said traders had been advised not to provide food or accept bulk orders expected to be placed for protesters, adding that residents feared detention if they participated.
Other resident groups have taken the opposite position. Ashok Bhasin, president of the North Delhi Residents’ Welfare Federation, said local police had called to advise people against attending because Section 163 was in place. He said the federation would continue with its plans, arguing that protesting was a right and that the SIR process required public attention.
The mobilisation has focused particularly on residents who could face difficulties during the electoral-roll revision process. Youth organisations and community groups have been visiting slum settlements and contacting domestic workers, daily-wage earners and factory workers. At least seven organisations, including anganwadi and women’s groups, are conducting door-to-door campaigns, according to the report.
Naureen, a member of the Disha Students’ Organisation, said many people from marginalised working-class communities did not know what SIR involved or how deletion from electoral rolls could affect them. She said some residents had not been approached by Booth Level Officers or Election Commission officials about deletions or the documents required to submit claims.
The organisers said police deployment and possible restrictions on transport and communication services could make it difficult for people from distant parts of Delhi to reach the protest site. They nevertheless said several residents remained willing to participate. The October 10 protest is seeking the removal of Gyanesh Kumar as Chief Election Commissioner and suspension of the SIR drive. The Revolutionary Workers’ Party of India also said its Bhagat Singh Jan Adhikar Yatra was mobilising working people in 13 States to demand that the SIR process be scrapped and elections held again in States affected by it.
