Cockroach Janta Party founder Abhijeet Dipke on Monday criticised the Delhi Police’s decision to de-notify Jantar Mantar as a designated protest venue, warning that the move would not stop demonstrations.
“Ab poora desh Jantar Mantar banega,” Dipke said in a post on X.
“They have removed as a designated protest site. Yes, it’s no longer a protest site as anyway it was turned into a war zone by the coward dictator. Ab poora desh Jantar Mantar banega! (sic)” wrote.
The reaction came after a circular issued on Monday announced that , located in Lutyens’ Delhi, would no longer be a designated venue for protests and demonstrations.
The police also identified three alternative locations across the capital for holding such gatherings.
According to the circular, the Ministry of Home Affairs constituted a committee to examine alternative venues where citizens could exercise their right to organise protests and demonstrations.
Based on the committee’s recommendations, Jantar Mantar was de-notified as a designated protest venue.
The three alternative sites are:
Ramlila Ground
Burari Ground
CBD Ground in Shahdara
The circular added that detailed and revised standard operating procedures (SOPs) for organising protests and demonstrations at the three locations would be issued separately.
Jantar Mantar has been a focal point for youth-led protests since June, with demonstrations organised by the , founded by Dipke. The protests centred on alleged examination irregularities and culminated in the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
The venue has also witnessed renewed mobilisation over allegations of electoral irregularities involving Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and Opposition claims of “vote chori” (vote theft) linked to the Special Intensive Revision () exercise.
The latest protests gained momentum after an investigative report by The Indian Express raised questions about the Election Commission’s handling of decisions related to the SIR exercise.
The Delhi Police’s decision comes after a weekend of mass detentions. The police described the detentions as preventive measures to maintain law and order amid protest calls by several groups, primarily the , against Kumar.
The demonstrations followed the Indian Express investigation, which reported that Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had objected on record at least 14 times over the preceding 10 months to decisions and orders concerning the SIR exercise.
According to the report, the objections related to decisions that the two commissioners said had been issued without their knowledge or recommendation.
