Delhi under heavy security as police deny CJP permission for Jantar Mantar protest on October 10
Delhi Police have refused the Cockroach Janta Party permission for its October 10 protest and deployed about 43,000 personnel across the capital between October 8 and 12.
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Opposition parties and the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) have announced a major agitation demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. Delhi Police have since been placed on full alert. The CJP has proposed to gherao Jantar Mantar on October 10, and the whole capital has taken on the look of a fortress.
To maintain law and order, security arrangements in Delhi have been tightened between October 8 and 12. About 20,000 Delhi Police personnel have been deployed along with 23,000 personnel of central armed police forces. Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita is in force across New Delhi. Under it, no gathering of four or more people and no protest of any kind will be allowed.
Given the gravity of the situation, all major metro stations in the Delhi area may be kept closed. If required for security reasons, local markets may also be shut for some time.
Delhi Police have not given the CJP permission for the agitation. According to the police, an application must be submitted at least 10 days in advance for any protest at Jantar Mantar, and a crowd of no more than 1,000 people can be permitted. The police said that instead of seeking permission, the CJP submitted only a letter of intimation, and the permission was therefore refused.
After permission was denied, CJP co-convener Saurav Das said that seeking permission for a protest was foolish and that the party had informed the police.
A total of 221 companies of paramilitary forces will be deployed by October 12. The Union Home Ministry has given Delhi Police 110 additional companies. These include 85 companies of the CRPF, 10 of the SSB, 7 of the RAF, 7 of the ITBP and 1 of the CISF.
Police forces have also been called in from states around Delhi. During the farmers' agitation, 93 companies had been deployed, and the present arrangements are being seen as considerably larger. Multi-layered barricading has been put up on all roads leading into Delhi to stop any unauthorised vehicle or crowd from entering.
Cameras with advanced facial recognition system (FRS) technology have been installed to identify suspects. Police in neighbouring states such as Uttar Pradesh and Haryana have also been directed to step up vigilance at the border.
