Delhi Police register two FIRs over Opposition march; seeks CAPF deployment extension till October 20

Delhi Police has registered two FIRs over the Opposition's march to the Supreme Court against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and sought an extension of the deployment of 273 companies of Central Armed Police Forces (CAPF) in the national capital till October 20 amid concerns over potential protests.

The FIRs were registered at Barakhamba Road and Tilak Marg police stations in connection with Monday's protest, officials said on Tuesday. Police said permission had not been granted for the march and alleged that several Opposition leaders were seen breaking police barricades with the help of a mini-truck.

The 'March for Democracy' saw several INDIA bloc leaders, including Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and Trinamool Congress supremo Mamata Banerjee, join activists and supporters to protest against alleged voter deletions and irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls under Kumar.

Police seek extension of CAPF deployment

In a letter to the Union Ministry of Home Affairs, Delhi Police requested an extension of the CAPF deployment, which was scheduled to end on Monday, to maintain law and order and deal with any potential situation, sources said.

"A total of 301 CAPF companies had been approved for deployment in Delhi, including 221 companies cleared on October 6 and another 80 on October 8," a source said.

Of the additional 80 companies, 28 had not reported to Delhi Police as of Monday, the sources said.

Police have flagged the possibility of demonstrations at several sensitive locations, including Jantar Mantar, the Election Commission, Parliament House and India Gate. Demonstrations by the Bhim Army, student organisations and other political groups are also among the concerns cited by police.

Protests over electoral roll revision

The last few days have seen protests against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the SIR of electoral rolls in different parts of Delhi.

Over the weekend, the capital witnessed a massive security deployment, the closure of 45 metro stations and intensive checks at the city's border points. Thousands of protesters, including Cockroach Janta Party leaders and former chief ministers, were detained.