A Durga Puja committee in Delhi’s CR Park has asked Lieutenant Governor Taranjit Singh Sandhu to allow loudspeakers and sound systems to operate until midnight during the festival, while Delhi Police says its intervention is intended to enforce court rules on noise pollution.
The request was made by the Dakshin Palli Durga Puja Samiti, which said no order extending the permitted timing beyond 11pm had been issued by the LG’s office this year. The committee said this differed from previous years, when it claimed that permission had been granted for sound systems to continue until midnight during Durga Puja.
In an appeal, the samiti said authorities were requiring cultural programmes to end at 11pm because no extension had been notified. It described the situation as creating confusion, resentment and anger among organisers and devotees. The committee asked the LG to permit the use of sound systems until midnight during the festival.
The organisers also cited their existing programme commitments. According to the appeal, puja committees had already booked artistes from Kolkata and Mumbai for cultural performances. The request therefore places the timing dispute within a wider question faced by public festivals in residential neighbourhoods: how cultural programmes can continue while authorities enforce limits intended to control noise for nearby residents.
Delhi Police rejected the committee’s description of its intervention in a post on X. DCP South Delhi said the police action was intended only to ensure compliance with court rules on noise pollution. The officer said organisers had continued playing loud music beyond the permitted time despite agreeing to the rules during earlier meetings.
The police also said it remained committed to ensuring safe festivities and urged all parties to cooperate. The statement did not indicate that an extension to midnight had been approved, leaving the 11pm timing as the operative limit described in the report.
The dispute highlights the administrative role of timing permissions in large public celebrations. A decision to extend loudspeaker use requires coordination between festival organisers, the police and the office of the Lieutenant Governor, while enforcement takes place at the neighbourhood level. In CR Park, the immediate disagreement is over whether past permissions should be continued this year or whether the existing noise restrictions should remain in force.
For organisers, the decision affects the scheduling of booked performances and other cultural events. For residents and enforcement agencies, the issue concerns compliance with the permitted hours and court directions on noise pollution. The next step rests with the LG’s office on the committee’s request, while police enforcement remains guided by the 11pm limit described by the authorities.
