Jantar Mantar Protest Ends in Hundreds of Detentions

Over 500 people were detained in Delhi on Gandhi Jayanti during a protest against the SIR exercise.

A protest against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls led to the detention of more than 500 people in Delhi on October 2, turning Gandhi Jayanti into a major day of political demonstrations in the capital. Protesters included opposition workers, student organisations and activists who sought to reach Jantar Mantar and demand Kumar’s resignation. Delhi Police had refused permission for the demonstration and imposed prohibitory restrictions in central Delhi ahead of the planned gathering.

Security arrangements affected large parts of central Delhi. Authorities restricted movement around Jantar Mantar and police detained groups of protesters who attempted to gather. Former Delhi Chief Minister Atishi, AAP Delhi chief Saurabh Bharadwaj, AISA president Neha Bora and activist Yogendra Yadav were among those detained. The authorities also restricted access around several central locations, while the Delhi Metro temporarily closed entry and exit at 11 stations including Janpath, Patel Chowk, Central Secretariat, Rajiv Chowk, Mandi House and New Delhi. Interchange facilities continued at several stations.

The protest formed part of a broader campaign against the Election Commission’s handling of electoral-roll revision. Demonstrators have alleged irregularities and mass deletion of voters, while the Commission has maintained administrative mechanisms for correcting and restoring eligible names. The confrontation therefore brings together two separate questions: the substance of the SIR exercise and the right of political groups to demonstrate against it. The day’s events also generated a striking contrast with Gandhi Jayanti, a national occasion associated with civil disobedience, public mobilisation and democratic dissent. The immediate political significance will depend on whether the protests expand into other cities and whether the Election Commission’s special enrolment drive succeeds in addressing concerns about excluded voters.