E-Paper
No protest allowed at Jantar Mantar, sec 163 imposed: Delhi police warns amid reservation stir
Prohibitory orders are in place, banning gatherings of five or more, and legal action will be taken against those spreading false information.
Delhi Police on Sunday said no permission has been granted to any individual or organisation to hold a protest or gathering at Jantar Mantar over reservation reforms and warned people against assembling there based on "misleading" social media posts.
This comes after several videos and posts surfaced on social media calling upon people to gather at Jantar Mantar on Sunday.
"Prohibitory orders under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), which replaced Section 144 of the CrPC, are already in force in New Delhi district," police said in a statement.
Accordingly, protest marches, processions, demonstrations and assemblies of five or more persons are prohibited in the area, they said.
Citizens are advised not to gather on the basis of such posts or videos and not to forward, share or amplify unverified content, they added.
Police also warned that appropriate legal action will be taken against those found creating, circulating or disseminating fake or misleading information.
They appealed to people to rely only on verified information.
What happened at the protest
The Delhi Police on August 21st detained several protesters who gathered at Jantar Mantar for an anti-reservation demonstration, with security tightened in and around the protest site amid a heavy turnout, a senior officer said.
Visuals showed police personnel detaining protesters -- a majority of whom were men -- as a large number of people gathered at the site carrying banners, posters and saffron flags, and raising slogans against caste-based reservation.
The protesters were mobilised through social media for the demonstration, demanding that economic criteria be given precedence over caste in determining eligibility for government support and reservation.
Police deployed personnel and paramilitary forces at key points in the area ahead of the protest and put up barricades to regulate the movement of people towards Jantar Mantar.
