On Friday, the Delhi Police detained multiple protesters during an anti-reservation demonstration at Jantar Mantar. The police heightened security measures in the area due to a large turnout, according to a senior police officer. The protest reflects ongoing tensions surrounding reservation policies in India.
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. 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. “The circumstances have changed considerably over the decades.
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The Delhi Police said no permission had been granted for any protest, procession, demonstration or assembly at Jantar Mantar. However, a no-objection certificate (NOC) was issued for a peaceful protest under the banner of “Reservation Hatao Andolan” at a different venue — Ramlila Ground — on Friday, according to an official communication by the office of the Central District DCP. The NOC allowed a maximum of 500 people to gather at the Ramlila Ground until 4 pm, with police stating that it had “no objection” to a protest at Ramlila Maidan from a law and order point of view. The protest campaign was spearheaded by “Reservation Hatao Andolan”, an Instagram-based page that subsequently appealed to people to join a physical demonstration at Jantar Mantar on August 21. There should be a wider discussion on whether the existing framework needs to be reviewed and how economic disadvantage can be addressed without discrimination,” he said.
