On Friday, the Delhi High Court challenged the government over its decision to keep permitting demonstrations at Jantar Mantar, with Justice Amit Mahajan asking why the location was not being closed as an officially designated protest site.
While considering a petition filed by the All India Dalit Christian Rights Protection Committee, which requested that the Delhi Police be directed to decide on its application for permission to stage a protest at Jantar Mantar, Justice Mahajan observed that the city should not be "held to ransom unnecessarily" by demonstrations in the central part of the capital.
“Why don’t you stop it? In my view, such incidents should not occur in the city, but it is for the government to decide. Why should the city be held to ransom without reason?” the judge said, according to a Bar and Bench report.
Senior Advocate Sanjoy Ghose, representing the petitioner, argued that the Delhi Police had neither granted nor denied the organisation’s request, which has remained pending since July. “We have stated that a maximum of 75 people will attend. The Delhi Police have been holding on to our application since July. They have not turned it down,” Ghose informed the court.
‘Why cannot Centre shut down Jantar Mantar:’
Justice Mahajan then questioned Additional Solicitor General Chetan Sharma on why the government could not simply close Jantar Mantar as a designated protest venue.
“In my view, why don’t you close this down? It should not be located within Delhi,” the judge remarked. In response, ASG Sharma stated that the matter was already pending before the Supreme Court, which is considering whether “Jantar Mantar can even be designated as a protest site.” “In my opinion, it should not be,” Justice Mahajan replied.
Ghose then asked whether it was the Centre’s position that no protests should be allowed in Delhi.
Justice Mahajan responded, “That’s for the police to decide. If they can’t afford to have protests inside the city, that’s…”
“Fair enough, let them declare that there will be no democratic, non-violent demonstrations in Delhi. We will accept that,” Ghose stated, according to a Bar and Bench report.
Not against democratic right to protest: Justice Mahajan
Justice Mahajan clarified that he was not challenging the democratic character of the protests, but was opposed to the city being effectively held to ransom. Additional Solicitor General Sharma then referred to Section 144 and security concerns related to Independence Day, noting that assemblies of 75 people could grow unpredictably, according to news agency PTI.
The court instructed the Delhi Police to rule on the request for protest permission by August 8.
Jantar Mantar, situated in the centre of the national capital, recently became the focal point of large-scale demonstrations over the NEET-UG paper leak. The protest, organised by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) and climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, drew vast numbers of students along with their families, who rallied against irregularities in the examination system and the NEET paper leak.