The Delhi Police has given a no-objection certificate (NOC) for a peaceful protest under the “Reservation Hatao Andolan” at city's Ramlila Ground on Friday, according to an official communication issued by the office of the Deputy Commissioner of Police, Central District.
The NOC allows a maximum of 500 people to gather at the venue until 4 pm, with the police stating that it had “no objection" for the protest from “law and order point of view”.
The development comes amid a digital campaign by “Reservation Hatao Andolan”, an Instagram-based page that has gained momentum by adopting protest-mobilisation tactics used by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP). The campaign, which has 5.6 million followers on Instagram, had earlier called for an anti-reservation protest at Jantar Mantar on August 21.
The permission comes after the Delhi Police had denied reports that permission had been granted for a protest at Jantar Mantar. “No permission has been granted for any protest, procession, demonstration or assembly at Jantar Mantar,” the police said in a statement shared on its official X account on Thursday.
The latest communication, however, grants permission for the gathering at Ramlila Ground, subject to the organisers following guidelines prescribed under the relevant Delhi Police standing orders.
Delhi police issue guidelines
{{/usCountry}}The latest communication, however, grants permission for the gathering at Ramlila Ground, subject to the organisers following guidelines prescribed under the relevant Delhi Police standing orders.
Delhi police issue guidelines
{{/usCountry}}The police said that any procession or stay is not allowed and directed the organisers to comply with all instructions and guidelines issued by police authorities from time to time.
The police also warned that the NOC could be revoked at any stage if the organisers fail to comply with the stipulated conditions.
What are the movement's demands
As part of its proposed reforms, the Reservation Hatao Andolan has argued that if the objective is to eliminate caste-based discrimination, the government should move away from requiring or recognising caste identities in everyday public life.
The campaign has argued against caste-based reservations, claiming they undermine merit, deepen caste divisions and affect the quality of education by limiting competition. Instead, it has called for equal opportunities based on merit rather than caste.
The campaign has gained traction following the rise of the CJP, a satirical social media outfit founded by Abhijeet Dipke, that started as an online campaign and eventually developed into a youth-led protest movement. The CJP's protest at Delhi's Jantar Mantar over alleged examination irregularities, later culminated in the resignation of Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan.