Jantar Mantar has been “de-notified” as a protest spot; Delhi Police has chosen three other locations.

On the advice of a committee appointed by the Ministry of Home Affairs, Delhi Police have officially de-notified Jantar Mantar as a protest site. Ramlila Ground, Burari Ground, and CBD Ground in East Delhi are the three locations that have been chosen to take its place.

The Ministry of Home Affairs established a committee to look into “alternative proper venues” for individuals to organize rallies and demonstrations in place of the current “designated site,” according to a Standing Order signed on October 11 by Commissioner of Police Anurag Kumar.

The decree states that a “detailed and amended SOP” will be issued separately to control protests at the three recently announced protest locations.

Permission timeframes, crowd limitations, timings, and if previous criteria will apply are not specified in the order. It identifies itself as a partial amendment to a prior Standing Order that regulated protests in Delhi and was issued in April 2022, but it is unclear whether specific provisions of that order are being altered.

Since the Cockroach Janta Party and Left student organizations called for a protest at Jantar Mantar on October 10 and demanded the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, Central Delhi has been under virtual lockdown. Online reactions to the announcement of these new protest locations have been intense.