Proposed anti-CEC protests in Delhi and Mumbai on October 2 are facing venue restrictions, with Delhi Police yet to grant permission for a gathering at Jantar Mantar and Mumbai Police advising organisers to seek an alternative location for a planned demonstration at Shivaji Park.
The protests have been announced against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, with organisers and opposition parties raising demands related to the functioning of the Election Commission and the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. The Delhi and Mumbai events are scheduled for Gandhi Jayanti, while similar demonstrations have been announced or planned in other parts of the country.
In Delhi, social activists and student groups have called for a protest at Jantar Mantar. Opposition groups are also expected to participate or organise parallel demonstrations. Aam Aadmi Party Delhi president Saurabh Bharadwaj has appealed to people to join the proposed gathering.
According to a report by news agency PTI cited by Times of India, Delhi Police had not granted permission for the Jantar Mantar protest as of October 1. Barricades had also been placed on roads leading to the protest area, creating an immediate access and movement issue around a designated demonstration site.
In Mumbai, the Cockroach Janta Party, led by founder Abhijeet Dipke, has announced a “Jail Bharo Andolan” at Shivaji Park at 4pm near Gate No. 6. Mumbai Police have not granted permission for the gathering. Police said they were not empowered to approve such an event at the location in view of a 2013 Bombay High Court order and described the area as a silence zone. Organisers were advised to approach the authorities for an alternative venue.
Dipke has said the protests will continue until Kumar resigns and has announced plans for demonstrations in Goa, Karnataka, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Jharkhand. He has also warned of a protest at Jantar Mantar in Delhi later in October if the chief election commissioner does not step down.
The INDIA bloc has separately announced a nationwide campaign beginning October 2 over its demands concerning the Election Commission. Its programme includes district-level marches from October 2 to 8, a march to the Election Commission headquarters on October 6, a meeting with the President in the second week of October and a mega rally in Delhi on November 1.
The competing claims over permissions place the administration’s management of public spaces at the centre of the planned demonstrations. While organisers have announced venues and timings, the police positions reported in Delhi and Mumbai indicate that participation at those locations will depend on permissions, court-related restrictions and any alternative arrangements agreed with authorities. The Election Commission has defended its procedures, while opposition parties and protest organisers have continued to raise allegations and demand changes.
