Mumbai Police have denied permission for the Cockroach Janta Party’s protest at Shivaji Park on October 2, citing High Court directives, the absence of a mandatory civic permission and concerns over traffic, noise and emergency vehicle access.
The application for the protest was submitted to the police on September 26 by activist Ajinkya Shinde, an official said. The proposed gathering was announced as the starting point for a nationwide protest against the Election Commission of India and Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.
In its formal communication, the Shivaji Park police station said the police department was not empowered to grant permission for public gatherings at the ground under existing court orders and subsequent State government guidelines. The communication cited the Bombay High Court’s judgment in Public Interest Litigation 116 of 2009, dated January 4, 2013, and a Maharashtra Government order dated January 20, 2016.
The police also said the organisers had not submitted the mandatory permission letter from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation for use of the ground. The requirement places the proposed protest within the city’s wider system for regulating access to public spaces, where permissions from different authorities can determine whether an event is allowed to proceed.
Shivaji Park has also been designated a silence zone and is surrounded by residential areas, according to the police communication. Authorities cited the possibility of noise pollution and said the proposed gathering could cause severe traffic congestion in the area. They further warned that congestion could impede the movement of emergency vehicles to several hospitals located nearby.
The police advised the organisers to identify an alternative venue within Mumbai. They said that if a fresh application was submitted for another location, the competent authority would consider it in accordance with applicable rules and regulations.
The planned mobilisation against the Election Commission follows an Indian Express report that Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi had raised objections on several occasions over decisions and orders concerning the Special Intensive Revision. The Election Commission has said that differing views and observations are a normal part of institutional deliberations and that its orders have full legal sanction and follow statutory procedures.
The next step for the organisers is to submit a fresh application for an alternative venue, after which the competent authority will consider it under the applicable permissions and regulations.
