Scale of agitation caught forces off guard, forced redeployment

Police rapidly redeployed personnel and sought additional forces on Monday after thousands of protesters reached the Parliament area through multiple routes

Delhi Police were forced to rapidly redeploy personnel and call in additional forces on Monday after thousands of protesters reached the Parliament area through multiple routes, catching security planners off guard despite elaborate arrangements centred around Jantar Mantar, officials familiar with the operation said on Monday.

Over 2,000 personnel, 20 companies of paramilitary forces, anti-riot vehicles, ambulances and a mobile command centre were deployed for Monday’s protest. (Arvind Yadav/HT Photo)

Security officials, who asked not to be identified, admitted that they had underestimated the strength of the gathering and put it at about 35,000, but protesters and eyewitnesses said the number was at least twice as much. Police had deployed over 2,000 personnel, 20 companies of paramilitary forces, anti-riot vehicles, ambulances and a mobile command centre for Monday’s protest.

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According to senior police officers, the initial deployment was largely concentrated around the designated protest site at Jantar Mantar. However, by around 1.30pm, protesters had begun converging on Lutyens’ Delhi from several directions, including nearby Metro stations and roads leading into central Delhi, despite extensive barricading and traffic restrictions.

“As protesters started emerging from different directions simultaneously, deployment had to be shifted in real time. There was very little time for dialogue or persuasion before crowd-control measures had to be initiated,” an officer, requesting anonymity, said.

A second officer said such situations often require instantaneous decisions. “In a volatile law-and-order situation, deployments have to be adjusted based on where crowds actually gather rather than where they are expected to gather,” the officer said.

Officials said preparations had begun a day earlier. On Sunday night, New Delhi deputy commissioner of police Sachin Sharma, through police headquarters, directed all district police units to keep 100 personnel and an assistant commissioner of police on standby. “At around 9am on Monday, we received instructions to immediately send the reserve force to New Delhi district, which we did,” a third officer, who also asked to not be identified, said.

Through the day, senior officers held a series of review meetings to assess the security response and prepare for the possibility of continued protests during the remainder of Parliament’s Monsoon Session. “Every aspect of the security plan, including crowd management, deployment of forces, traffic regulation and emergency response, was reviewed,” a source said.

Officials, however, said Tuesday’s deployment is expected to be smaller as police anticipate fewer protesters. “There were more than 10,000 people at Jantar Mantar alone on Monday. If adjoining areas are included, the numbers were significantly higher. By evening, the crowd had reduced considerably, but we cannot rule out another large gathering,” an officer said.

Police said over 1,000 personnel, supported by paramilitary companies, will remain deployed around Parliament and Jantar Mantar. The security grid will continue to include Vajra anti-riot vehicles, Vikrant armoured vehicles, Varun water cannons, police buses for detainees, ambulances and a mobile command centre monitoring CCTV feeds across the protest zone.