New Delhi police remove Jantar Mantar as designated protest site

UPDATE - follow-up to As Jantar Mantar denotifed as protest site, a look at agitations held at 18th century observatory: New Delhi's Jantar Mantar is no longer an official site for protests, following a notice issued by Delhi Police Commissioner Anurag Kumar on Monday. The Ministry of Home Affairs formed a committee to find proper alternative venues for citizens to hold demonstrations, and the de-notification is based on its recommendations. Three new locations have been designated for protests: Ramlila Ground in Central Delhi, Burari Ground in North Delhi, and CBD Ground in East Delhi.

Reactions

The decision drew sharp criticism from Cockroach Janta Party spokesperson Saurav Das. He called the move unacceptable and an assault on the fundamental right to peaceful assembly, questioning whether the home ministry consulted the public or stakeholders. The wide footpath near the 18th-century Jantar Mantar observatory has served as New Delhi's main dissent square since 1993, emerging after gatherings were banned at the Boat Club during the Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid movement and a 1988 farm agitation led by Mahendra Singh Tikait. Successive governments favored Jantar Mantar because its smaller size and two entry points made large crowds easier to manage. In October 2018, the National Green Tribunal urged the Supreme Court to ban protests due to noise pollution and residential complaints, though the Supreme Court later ruled against a total ban in July 2018 under specific regulations.

Past Protests

The venue has hosted numerous landmark agitations over the decades. On April 5, 2011, social activist Anna Hazare began a hunger strike there to demand a Lokpal Bill, drawing figures like Prashant Bhushan and Arvind Kejriwal in a movement that led to the formation of the Aam Aadmi Party. In March and April 2017, debt-ridden Tamil Nadu farmers staged a 40-day protest demanding relief packages and debt waivers, ending their agitation after meeting then Chief Minister Eppadi K Palaniswami. Other notable demonstrations include protests against the abrogation of Article 370 in August 2019, demonstrations against the Citizenship Amendment Act in December 2019, and a March 2023 protest by Punjab farmer unions over loan waivers and minimum support prices. The site also witnessed campaigns demanding justice for Nirbhaya in 2012 and the death of student Nido Tania in 2014.

Context

Public protest spaces in capital cities are frequently balanced against traffic management, security requirements, and local resident complaints about noise and congestion. Shifting designated sites to alternative grounds outside central bureaucratic zones alters how citizens stage large-scale demonstrations near seats of government power.