Delhi Police formally de-notified Jantar Mantar as Delhi's designated protest venue on October 12, naming three alternative grounds for demonstrations after a Home Ministry committee review and a recent Supreme Court suggestion to find a better-equipped site.

A standing order issued by Delhi Police Commissioner Anurag Kumar said the Ministry of Home Affairs had constituted a committee to examine "alternative proper venues for citizen's right for organizing protest/demonstrations in place of the existing designated site." Based on its recommendations, Jantar Mantar as a protest venue has been de-notified.

The order names Ramlila Ground in Central Delhi, Burari Ground in North Delhi and CBD Ground in East Delhi as the three new designated venues. A detailed and revised standard operating procedure (SOP) for protests at these sites will be issued separately, the police said. The order partially modifies the earlier Standing Order No. L&O/48/22 issued on April 28, 2022.

The de-notification comes amid sustained protests in the national capital seeking the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. Large gatherings near Jantar Mantar had been cordoned off in recent days, and thousands of police personnel were deployed in central Delhi. Barricades were placed on key roads, and several metro stations remained closed on Monday for security reasons.

Why the venue change came now

The immediate trigger was a Supreme Court hearing on October 9. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told a bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant that the competent authority would consider designating a place other than Jantar Mantar for peaceful protests. The court asked the Centre to consider whether another location equipped with adequate amenities should be identified. The police order follows that statement and the MHA committee's report.

The change also reflects a long-running debate over the suitability of the site. Although Jantar Mantar sits close to Parliament and government offices, it is a narrow heritage precinct with limited space and two main entry and exit points. It has no formal designation as a protest area in Delhi's master plan, and residents have complained about noise and sanitation during prolonged agitations.

A historic protest square loses its status

Jantar Mantar was not Delhi's first protest hub. That role once belonged to the Boat Club lawns in central Delhi, where nearly five lakh farmers camped in 1988 under a farm leader. The gathering was followed by a government ban on Boat Club protests, and by 1993 Jantar Mantar had emerged as the practical alternative.

For decades, the tree-lined stretch served as the venue for a remarkable range of movements: the 2011 anti-corruption fast, the 2012 protests against sexual violence, protests by Tamil Nadu farmers seeking drought relief in 2017, the 2019 Citizenship Amendment Act demonstrations, wrestlers' protests in 2023, and this year's anti-NEET agitation and electoral roll protests. It was seen as the one place in central Delhi where a protest could physically assemble without immediate dispersal.

Legally, the site's status has been contested. In 2017, the National Green Tribunal asked authorities to shift protesters to an alternative ground about 4 km away, citing noise pollution and the area's residential zoning. In 2018, the Supreme Court ruled against a total ban on protests in the Jantar Mantar and Boat Club areas, allowing reasonable regulations on the manner and size of gatherings. The latest order reopens that arrangement by shifting the designated venue entirely.

Criticism and next steps

The de-notification drew immediate criticism from the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), a social media pressure group that led anti-exam-irregularity protests over the summer and has been active in the electoral roll campaign. Its co-convenor, Saurav Das, said the decision was an assault on fundamental rights.

"We do not accept this arbitrary decision. It is an assault on people's fundamental right to protest and peaceful assembly ," he wrote in a social media post. Ratna Singh, the CJP's head of legal affairs, said the government had first used a permission regime to control protests and had now taken away the designated space itself. "First, it was a game of permissions – now, when people demand a space to raise their voices, the protest site itself is being taken away," she wrote.

Criticism also came from opposition leaders, who have been holding their own demonstrations against the Election Commission over the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. They described the police response to recent protests as heavy-handed and said the legal battle would continue.

The practical effect of the order is immediate. Jantar Mantar is no longer available for public meetings or sit-ins. The three newly designated grounds—Ramlila Ground, Burari Ground and CBD Ground—will become the only authorised protest sites once the revised SOP is issued. The police have not yet published details on how permissions will be obtained, whether crowd limits will apply, or what amenities will be available at each venue.

The constitutional dimension is likely to be tested. The right to assemble peacefully is protected by Article 19(1)(b) of the Constitution, and the Supreme Court has repeatedly held that reasonable restrictions are permissible but that a blanket denial of protest space is not. A revised SOP that creates workable, accessible alternatives may survive scrutiny; one that effectively confines protests to inaccessible locations could face challenge.

The MHA committee has not released its report, and the police have not said whether protesters were consulted in selecting the three sites. For now, groups planning demonstrations in Delhi must either await the revised SOP or risk prohibitory orders in central Delhi. Opposition parties have said they will also press their electoral roll challenge before the Supreme Court, keeping the spotlight on both the poll process and the shrinking space for public protest.