Delhi Police has denied permission for a protest planned at Jantar Mantar on October 10 by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) and the All India Students’ Association (AISA), prompting extensive security and movement restrictions across Central Delhi. Police are preparing for a turnout of more than 50,000 people from Delhi and neighbouring states, with several Opposition parties expected to join the demonstration against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
The police rejected CJP’s request on Friday, saying the organisers submitted their intimation letter on October 7, only three days before the proposed gathering. According to the police, applications for such events should be submitted at least 15 days in advance. Joint Commissioner of Police (New Delhi) Nupur Prasad said the organisers had also failed to follow lawful directions during an earlier protest despite signing undertakings to comply.
“The last time CJP was given permission, they didn’t follow lawful directions, despite signing undertakings that they would comply. They didn’t follow any of them,” Prasad said, according to The Indian Express. CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke disputed the police position, saying Jantar Mantar is a designated protest site and that police permission is not required.
The restrictions extend beyond the protest venue. Prohibitory orders under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita are in force across Central Delhi. Police have asked liquor shops to remain closed and are coordinating with cab aggregators, including Ola and Uber, to regulate movement towards Lutyens’ Delhi.
Hotels, guest houses and other accommodation facilities in and around Central Delhi have also been asked to remain shut or restrict fresh bookings for a specified period. All metro stations will be closed from 9 pm on October 9 until the situation returns to normal, affecting commuters travelling through or towards the central administrative district.
The security operation is backed by a large Central Armed Police Forces deployment. The Ministry of Home Affairs has made 221 CAPF companies, comprising around 23,000 personnel, available to the Delhi Police between October 8 and October 12. The companies are being brought in from Jammu and Kashmir, West Bengal and Chhattisgarh.
With police anticipating a significant presence of women protesters, an additional 450 to 500 women paramilitary personnel will also be deployed. Police officers told The Indian Express that this will take the total CAPF strength involved in the arrangements to around 26,000 personnel.
The scale of the deployment and the restrictions around transport, accommodation and commercial activity indicate that the police response covers the wider Central Delhi area rather than Jantar Mantar alone. The immediate operational question is how authorities will manage access, public transport and crowd movement on October 10 while enforcing the prohibitory orders and preventing protesters from reaching sensitive areas.
