CJP Protesters Scale Gates at Jantar Mantar, Several Leaders Detained

Leaders and activists of India’s Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) climbed over gates to stage a protest at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on Tuesday (October 13), opposing the central government’s decision to remove the site from the list of designated protest venues. Delhi Police later detained several protesters.

A group of CJP activists, led by party leaders Ashutosh Ranka and Sourav Das, entered Jantar Mantar on Tuesday morning to demonstrate against the decision. CJP founder Abhijit Deepak shared a video of the protest on social media. The footage showed Mr. Ranka, Mr. Das and several other activists carrying party flags as they climbed over iron gates and police barricades to enter the site. They shouted slogans including “Bharat Mata Ki Jai” and “Inqilab Zindabad.” A brief scuffle-like situation developed when police tried to stop them. Officers later detained the protesters.

After the incident, Mr. Deepak wrote on social media, “You cannot ban resistance.” His remarks were directed at the central government’s decision to remove Jantar Mantar from the list of authorised protest venues. Located in a central and security-sensitive part of Delhi, Jantar Mantar has long served as a designated venue for demonstrations. However, following the government’s decision, protests and sit-ins are no longer permitted there.

Based on recommendations from a committee under the Union Home Ministry, three alternative venues have been designated for protests and sit-ins in Delhi: Ramlila Maidan, Burari Maidan and CBD Ground in East Delhi.

Delhi Police have tightened security at Jantar Mantar since October 10 and have been preventing protesters from entering the site. The CJP had called for a demonstration there that day. According to the report, senior party leaders Abhijit Deepak, Sourav Das and Ashutosh Ranka were detained inside an aircraft shortly after arriving in Delhi that morning.

Meanwhile, protests and police operations on various roads across Delhi on Saturday and Sunday triggered further tensions. Thousands of protesters were reportedly detained during the operations.

Source: NDTV