New Delhi: An unprecedented security clampdown and the detention of over 7,000 protesters, including CJP leader Abhijit Dipke, four former chief ministers and YouTuber Dhruv Rathee, helped the government thwart a planned mass mobilisation at Jantar Mantar Saturday to press for the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
Jantar Mantar, a designated protest site, wore a deserted look throughout the day, with the deployment of over 30,000 security personnel and waves of barricades in Lutyens’ Delhi to keep the protesters away from the area.
Opposition parties likened the situation to one worse than the Emergency, with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi urging the youth to “keep protesting” and asserting that “we are going to ensure that this regime and the people who have attacked the Constitution are defeated”.
Several INDIA bloc leaders, including former chief ministers Arvind Kejriwal, Mamata Banerjee, Pinarayi Vijayan and Manik Sarkar, were detained from multiple locations across the capital as they tried to join the protest called by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
“This has gone beyond an Emergency; it has become a Super Emergency,” Banerjee said.
CPI(M) general secretary M A Baby, veteran Left leader Brinda Karat, CPI(ML) Liberation general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya, activist Yogendra Yadav, lawyer Prashant Bhushan and All India Students’ Association (AISA) president Neha were also detained.
Gandhi, who was in Chennai for his Chhatron Ki Goonj event, also said the “core characteristic” of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the RSS is “cowardice”.
The Congress, which has been holding protests demanding the resignation of the CEC over alleged vote theft, however, maintained its distance from the CJP protest.
Dipke and two CJP leaders, Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, were detained by Delhi Police from inside the aircraft as soon as their flight from Mumbai landed in the national capital.
In a video shared by the CJP, Dipke could be heard telling police officers who entered the aircraft, “We are here to be arrested, come and arrest us.”
Before the detention, police personnel told the CJP leaders that they did not have permission to hold their protest at Jantar Mantar.
Dipke said CJP leaders were being detained as if they were criminals. He said that even former prime minister Indira Gandhi did not do this, adding that it amounted to dictatorship.
Rathee, who lives abroad and had come to join the CJP protest against CEC Kumar, was detained by police from his residence in Gurugram’s Sector 56 Saturday.
Around 1 pm, scores of protesters hurled stones at security personnel near Akashwani Bhawan on Imtiaz Ali Marg after jumping barricades, injuring two police personnel. The protesters were quickly detained by security personnel.
In the evening, a similar incident happened near Hanuman Temple in Connaught Place, where some protesters threw stones at security personnel. A total of seven personnel sustained injuries during the detention of protesters.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (South) Anant Mittal also sustained injuries to his hand during the detention of Left leaders, including AISA’s Neha.
Police are likely to file multiple FIRs in connection with the alleged assault on police personnel during the protest, a senior officer said.
New Delhi virtually turned khaki Saturday, with the deployment of over 30,000 police and paramilitary personnel ahead of the CJP protest. Waves of barricades lining the streets, the closure of 45 metro stations and intensive checks at the city’s border points, railway stations, bus terminals, hotels and other sensitive locations left the capital gridlocked.
More than 7,000 protesters were detained today across Delhi, including more than 2,000 in New Delhi area, police sources said.
In a pre-recorded video message released soon after his detention, CJP leader Dipke said the organisation’s in-charge, Ajinkya Shinde, would lead its protest at Jantar Mantar. The CJP asserted that the protest would continue nationwide, with or without its leaders.
Police informed Dipke about the death of his grandmother in Maharashtra and offered possible facilitation for his journey to his hometown on humanitarian grounds.
Dipke’s paternal grandmother, Savitribai Shankarrao Dipke, 85, died at her home in Santuk Pimpri village in Maharashtra’s Hingoli district around 11.30 am on Saturday following a prolonged illness, family sources said.
Hitting out at the Opposition, the BJP said that the protest meant to take the city “hostage” turned out to be a “flop show”, accusing Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi of spreading anarchy in cahoots with foreign powers, likening him to historical figure Mir Jafar.
It was a victory of democracy over “mob rule”, BJP leader Sambit Patra said, as hundreds of youths and several politicians who headed to Jantar Mantar were detained by Delhi Police.
A large number of police personnel detained groups of protesters from several places, including Hanuman Temple, Akashwani Bhawan, Safdarjung Flyover and Kerala House.
Regular announcements were being made by the police at Jantar Mantar, instructing people and mediapersons not to gather in one place.
The police also picked up a few protesters who managed to reach Jantar Mantar. The massive security arrangements by Delhi Police thwarted attempts by protesters to reach Jantar Mantar.
BJP president Nitin Nabin accused Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Kejriwal and the CJP of attempting to destabilise the country with the backing of foreign forces.
He asserted that the government would deal sternly with their “ill intentions”, while party workers would foil their design on the ground. The ruling party had back-to back press conferences on Saturday and deployed its senior leaders for the counter-offensive.
Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta asserted that the capital will not be held hostage and accused Gandhi and Kejriwal of trying to turn the city into a “battleground”, in league with their “B-Team” CJP.
Several journalists claimed that they were detained. Reporters alleged that they were detained despite displaying their press identity cards, and that their official phones were seized by police personnel before they were taken to detention buses along with other protesters.
Visuals circulating showed journalists displaying their press identity cards from inside the buses.
Top leaders of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), including Kejriwal, who openly supported the CJP, also failed to reach Jantar Mantar.
Kejriwal, who had earlier announced that he would join the protest along with his family members, alleged that the security clampdown in central Delhi to prevent the protest and detain CJP leaders was “worse than the Emergency”.
Kejriwal gave the “Delhi chalo” call, urging youth across the country to reach the national capital to demand the resignation of the chief election commissioner over “vote theft”, shortly before he was detained by the Delhi Police.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge lashed out at the Modi government over the detentions by Delhi police, saying it has turned the “mother of democracy” into a “muzzled democracy”. The Congress chief alleged that the cowardice of the BJP-RSS is on full display today.
More than 120 companies of Central Armed Police Forces assisted Delhi Police in managing the security situation. Personnel were deployed at strategic locations, while mock drills were conducted at several places to assess preparedness and response mechanisms.
Authorities also monitored social media platforms for attempts to mobilise people for the protest. More than 200 content creators were reportedly under scrutiny as police examined online posts and messages linked to the proposed gathering.
Liquor shops across Delhi were closed as a precautionary measure. With restrictions affecting major transport hubs and several parts of the city, commuters were advised to check official announcements and plan their journeys accordingly.
