A planned protest by the Cockroach Janta Party at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar on October 10 has prompted extensive security and mobility restrictions across the capital, including closures at 57 Delhi Metro stations, cancellations of some trains and heightened checks at entry points from Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.
The protest, scheduled to begin at 10 am, is being held to demand the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. According to the report, Opposition parties have backed the call, with protesters expected to gather at Jantar Mantar, where demonstrations were also held in July.
Delhi Metro Rail Corporation entry and exit facilities at 57 stations will be closed from 9 pm on Friday. The affected stations include major interchanges and central locations such as Rajiv Chowk, New Delhi, Central Secretariat, Mandi House, Kashmere Gate, ITO, Janpath and Patel Chowk. Stations in southern, eastern, northern and north-eastern Delhi, including Hauz Khas, Lajpat Nagar, Jamia Millia Islamia, Vishwavidyalaya, Azadpur, Shahdara and Rohini West, are also on the list.
The closures are expected to affect commuters well beyond the protest venue because several of the stations serve as interchange points or connect residential areas with central business, government and institutional districts. The report did not specify when entry and exit restrictions at each station would be lifted.
Rail operations will also be affected. Trains arriving at New Delhi and Hazrat Nizamuddin railway stations have been cancelled between 4 am and 2 pm on Saturday. Travellers using these stations have been advised through the reported restrictions to account for changes to their journeys, although the supplied report does not provide a complete list of cancelled services.
The Delhi Police has spoken with cab aggregators Uber and Ola to restrain movement around Jantar Mantar. The report also says police sources will closely track bulk orders placed through food and instant-delivery services, including Zomato, Blinkit and Zepto, in the area.
Connaught Place shops and restaurants are scheduled to remain closed on October 10 following an advisory by the New Delhi Traders Association. Liquor shops across Delhi will be closed on October 9 and 10.
Security measures extend to the city’s borders and accommodation facilities. In Faridabad, checkpoints have been established at eight major entry and exit points, including the Badarpur border, Pul Pehladpur, the Shooting Range border and Mangar Chowk. Each checkpoint will reportedly be staffed by 30 police personnel working in 12-hour shifts from 10 am to 10 pm.
The Chilla border and the Delhi-Noida Direct Flyway are also expected to face heightened checking. The report says vehicles may be stopped to check passenger numbers and whether occupants are carrying protest-related posters or banners. Police have additionally checked hotels and guesthouses in Delhi and instructed them not to accept new visitors who appear to be arriving for the protest.
The report says detention centres have been established in all 15 districts of Delhi. District authorities have been instructed to intensify patrolling and stop people travelling towards the protest area, with those refusing to turn back sent to detention centres. The supplied report does not provide further details on the legal basis, operating procedures or capacity of these centres.
The restrictions place the protest within a citywide security and transport response involving public transit, railways, roads, commercial establishments, delivery platforms and inter-state borders. The next operational milestone is the start of the protest at Jantar Mantar at 10 am on October 10, alongside the scheduled metro, rail and border controls.
