Indian Youth Congress’s (IYC) chief Uday Bhanu Chib moved the Delhi high court against Delhi police’s decision to de-notify Jantar Mantar as a designated protest site in the Capital.
They designated three alternative venues for protests: Ramlila Maidan, Burari Ground in north Delhi, and CBD Ground in east Delhi. The application has been filed in Chib’s petition against Delhi Police’s denial of permission for a protest at Jantar Mantar. Delhi police on Monday denotified Jantar Mantar as a protest site, ending its 33-year-long designation as one of the country’s demonstration hubs. This was a day after the Delhi police told the high court on Tuesday that Monday’s notification was passed following a Supreme Court October 9 order earlier this month that nudged authorities to consider alternative, better-equipped spaces where residents could exercise their democratic rights without hindering public safety.
The order, titled “Guidelines for Holding Protests or Demonstrations in Delhi”, said the Union ministry of home affairs constituted a committee to “examine alternative proper venues for citizen’s right for organising protest/demonstrations in place of the existing ‘designated site’”. “Based on the committee’s recommendations, Jantar Mantar as a protest venue has been de-notified,” the order said, adding that three new venues were designated for organising protests and demonstrations. A bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant and justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana said the national capital needed a larger, better-equipped space where citizens could exercise their democratic right to protest without compromising public safety, access to emergency services or the interests of other residents.
