New Delhi, Oct 15 (PTI): The Delhi High Court on Thursday refused to restrain the CJP and its founder Abhijeet Dipke from holding a protest at Connaught Place’s Central Park on October 16, even as it took on record the police’s assurance that all possible steps would be taken to regulate and control the activity of the protesters.
A bench of Acting Chief Justice Nitin Wasudeo Sambre and Justice Sanjay Sharma was hearing a plea by a Connaught Place vendor seeking a direction to the police to regulate the protest according to existing law laid down by the Supreme Court.
The petitioner’s senior counsel submitted that traders and vendors would be “on the streets” if they lost another weekend to closures due to protest in central Delhi during the festive season.
Dipke on Wednesday called on “patriots” to gather at Central Park on October 16 with the national flag, alleging that CJP members Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka were “jailed for unfurling the tricolour”.
The call came on a day Das and Ranka were sent to five-day judicial custody and were lodged in Tihar Jail for allegedly violating their peace bonds and trespassing into Jantar Mantar, which has been denotified as a protest area.
During the hearing on Thursday, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Chetan Sharma submitted that steps have been taken to control the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP)’s activities and assured that the apprehension of the petitioner would be taken care of. The court took the assurance on record.
“The petitioner apprehends that the conduct of respondent no. 6 (CJP) is likely to disrupt business activity in Connaught Place… When confronted, the ASG assures that the apprehension of the petitioner shall be taken care of as the respondents have already taken steps in the matter to control and regulate the activity of respondent no. 6 and if so required, all possible steps in accordance with law shall be taken. The assurance is taken on record,” the order said, while listing it for further hearing on November 3.
Even as the senior counsel for the petitioner urged the court to pass a “specific” direction restraining the CJP, the bench said, “Don’t insist. We have passed the order.”
Senior advocate Sachhin Puri, appearing for a licensed street vendor who sells readymade garments at Palika Bazar, argued that Connaught Place was not a designated protest site, and any agitation in the central park there would affect their business.
The court observed that the authorities have already denotified Jantar Mantar as a designated protest site, and asked why the petitioner apprehended that the police would not take necessary action in relation to the proposed protest.
The ASG responded that the police would “perform its duty”.
The petition, filed as a PIL by Anil Kumar Gupta, said that until its de-notification, the conditions governing protests at Jantar Mantar were not enforced, which led to vendors losing business.
“On or about 20.07.2026, a large agitation spilled beyond the designated area. The roads around Jantar Mantar and Parliament Street were barricaded and came to a standstill. Customers stopped coming to Connaught Place and Palika Bazar, and the petitioner could not vend, which caused loss on a daily basis,” the plea stated.
The matter came up before the bench after it agreed to hear the petition on an urgent basis earlier in the day.
“In the heart of Connaught Place Central Park, a protest is called. It seems we are being targeted. This is not a site (for protest). They have already started shutting down. This is the Dussehra weekend. This protest has to be stopped,” the petitioner’s senior counsel had said while mentioning the matter in the morning.
Central Delhi has witnessed massive protests being carried out by opposition parties, student groups and civil society members since June-July over various issues, including matters related to the functioning of the Election Commission.
Earlier, the Supreme Court has issued directions in the Mazdoor Kisan Shakti Sangathan and Shaheen Bagh protest cases that traffic, office gates and arterial roads cannot be blocked due to protests.
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