Delhi rally preparations at Ramlila Maidan have entered their final stage, with police deploying extensive security and crowd-control measures ahead of the Indian National Congress gathering on November 1. Police expect around 50,000 people to attend the event, which is being held over the party’s demand for Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.
The 12-acre ground is being divided into 14 zones, each supervised by an assistant commissioner of police leading a team of 25 personnel. The zones will form part of eight larger regions overseen by additional deputy commissioners of police. More than 3,000 police officers and 10,000 paramilitary personnel are expected to be deployed around the venue and its approaches.
The security plan is also intended to prevent the crowd from leaving the ground and moving towards Jantar Mantar, according to senior police officers cited in the report. Of the venue’s eight gates, three will be opened for general entry. A fourth will be reserved for very important persons carrying passes, while another will be used by senior police officers. Attendees will undergo two layers of frisking, with baggage-screening equipment and metal detectors being installed.
More than 150 artificial intelligence-enabled cameras will scan faces in and around the ground, while police personnel will wear body cameras. Organisers have been asked to install high-definition CCTV cameras at strategic locations and establish a control room to monitor the footage. Police said the recordings would help document crowd-management operations and the conduct of officers during the rally.
Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra reviewed preparations at the venue on Thursday evening, accompanied by Congress organisation general secretary K C Venugopal and MP Pawan Khera. Workers were putting up a large tent over the main stage and erecting metal barricades. A separate stage was also being prepared for leaders of INDIA bloc parties, while chairs and canopy tents were being arranged across the ground.
The rally is scheduled from 10 am to 5 pm. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi and other party leaders have called on supporters, including students and civil society groups, to attend. Party leaders from neighbouring states have been asked to mobilise workers, while the Indian Youth Congress has said participants will wear white clothes as a symbol linked to its allegations about voters being marked dead or removed from electoral rolls.
An official communication dated October 17 granted the Congress request to book Ramlila Maidan from October 25 to November 3, subject to permission from the land-owning authority and compliance with specified conditions. Organisers must provide drinking water, separate toilets for women, adequate volunteers and parking arrangements coordinated with traffic police. They have also been asked to submit details of invitees, volunteers and buses carrying participants.
Overnight stays at the venue are not permitted. Police have cautioned organisers against unruly behaviour and speeches that could disturb communal harmony. The rally follows the INDIA bloc’s plan to hold a public proceeding concerning the Chief Election Commissioner on October 30 at Kharge’s residence on Rajaji Marg, after permission hurdles affected plans for other venues.
