Delhi is under heavy restrictions as the CJP calls a “Final Call” protest against CEC Gyanesh Kumar: police permission denied, Metro stations shut, 250+ trains cancelled and internet blocked.
The Cockroach Janta Party has asked supporters to gather at Jantar Mantar at 10 am today, calling it the "Final Call To Save Democracy" and demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar along with a rollback of the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. Delhi Police denied permission on Friday. Officer Nupur Prasad said applications for events at the site must be filed at least ten days ahead, that the CJP had given short notice, and that it had not complied with conditions set for an earlier demonstration. The CJP disputes this, arguing that organisers need only inform police, not seek approval. Today's call has drawn support from opposition parties, farmer organisations and student groups, and follows CJP rallies in Mumbai and Bengaluru.
The preparations are extensive. Reports put the security deployment between 23,000 and more than 30,000 police and paramilitary personnel, and the Home Ministry has asked all states and Union Territories to help stop protesters from travelling to Delhi. Between 45 and 57 Metro stations, depending on the count, have been shut, traffic diversions are planned at 30 points, and the Railway Board cancelled more than 250 trains serving New Delhi and Hazrat Nizamuddin stations. A police order sent to mobile operators also blocks mobile internet within four kilometres of the Janpath-Kartavya Path crossing until 10 pm today, an area of roughly 50 square kilometres that includes the Supreme Court, Parliament and several hospitals. The Internet Freedom Foundation has criticised the order for being unpublished, which it says conflicts with the Supreme Court's ruling in Anuradha Bhasin. Airfares on some routes have climbed as travellers look for alternatives to cancelled trains.
The curbs reached the Supreme Court on Friday, where senior advocate Kapil Sibal told a bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant that with trains cancelled and Metro stations closed, nobody could move anywhere. Justice Joymalya Bagchi said the right to protest must be exercised within the law and asked how the court could strike a balance without hearing from the organisers, who were not before it. The petitioners said they would return with more details. The Hindu also pointed to a later observation from the court that a blanket ban on movement in the capital appeared over-reaching.
Late on Friday, students said police were stopping them near campuses. NSUI's Ebin Basil said four women from Jamia were detained near the university around 11:30 pm and released at about 3 am, adding that police told him he was already on a preventive detention list. JNU's gates were barricaded overnight, prompting a protest inside. CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke said he would land in Delhi at 9:30 am. He said he was not afraid of detention or of charges under the UAPA or NSA, and urged supporters to keep the protest going even if he is held, saying it should centre on the Constitution rather than on one person.
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