‘Will take measures under law’: Delhi Police tells HC over CJP’s flag march

A Palika Bazar vendor argued that protests could restrict roads, footpaths and metro entrances, harming local livelihoods.

Delhi Police on Thursday assured the Delhi High Court that it would take “all possible measures under the law” in response to the Cockroach Janta Party’s (CJP) call for supporters to gather with the national flag at Central Park near Connaught Place on Friday.

On Tuesday, CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke urged “patriots” to assemble at Central Park on Friday with the national flag. He alleged that CJP members Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka had been “jailed only for unfurling the Tricolour”. (HT Archive)

The assurance was given by additional solicitor general Chetan Sharma and standing counsels Ashish Dixit and Amit Tiwari during a hearing on a petition filed by Anil Kumar Gupta, a street vendor at Palika Bazar, near Connaught Place.

“When confronted, the ASG appearing for rest of the respondent assures that the apprehension of the petitioners will be taken care of as respondents have already taken action to control and regulate the activities of respondent 6 and all possible measures under the law will be taken. The assurance is taken on record,” the court said in its order.

The matter will next be heard on November 3.

His petition said Palika Bazar, where he conducts his vending business, is directly beneath Central Park. Without timely action, roads, footpaths and metro station entrances in Connaught Place could be restricted on Friday, affecting the livelihoods of street vendors and daily-wage earners in the area, he argued.

To be sure, the petition comes days after Delhi Police de-notified Jantar Mantar as a designated protest site, ending its long-standing role as one of the country’s most prominent venues for demonstrations. The order, signed by police commissioner Anurag Kumar, designated three alternative venues: Ramlila Maidan, Burari Ground in north Delhi and CBD Ground in east Delhi.

On Tuesday, CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke urged “patriots” to assemble at Central Park on Friday with the national flag. He alleged that CJP members Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka had been “jailed only for unfurling the Tricolour”.

Das and Ranka were sent to five days of judicial custody and lodged in Tihar Jail for allegedly violating their peace bonds and trespassing into Jantar Mantar after it had been de-notified as a protest site.

The proposed gathering comes amid sustained protests against the Election Commission in Delhi, particularly around Jantar Mantar, Connaught Place and central Delhi. The demonstrations have prompted extensive security deployments, prohibitory orders, traffic restrictions, internet suspensions and detentions.

The CJP and opposition parties have been protesting against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

Over the past week, large crowds have taken to the streets amid metro station closures, internet shutdowns and restrictions on public gatherings. The deployment of around 40,000 security personnel turned parts of the Capital into a heavily guarded zone, while incidents of protesters being dragged, manhandled and detained drew criticism.

The Opposition has demanded Kumar’s removal and the scrapping of the SIR exercise. The Bharatiya Janata Party, meanwhile, has accused opposition parties of attempting to undermine constitutional institutions to divert attention from their political and electoral setbacks.