Security personnel keeping vigil near a fortified Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on October 11, 2026.
| Photo Credit: SUSHIL KUMAR VERMA
Exactly three days before the Delhi Police de-notified central Delhi’s Jantar Mantar as a designated protest site on Monday (October 12, 2026), the Supreme Court and the Union government were on the same page about finding an alternative site to “peacefully and lawfully” express dissent in the national capital.
On October 9, both the court and the government had reasoned that central Delhi was too cramped for protests. It denied protesters basic amenities. Observations and remarks were also exchanged about how inconvenient protests in and around Jantar Mantar were to ordinary commuters in Delhi. The Chief Justice of India remarked that central Delhi did not have any washroom, medical and drinking water facilities.
The four-page order passed on October 9 actually records the Supreme Court Bench headed by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant urging the Union government to look for a “spacious, open” alternative site.
The order was passed during the October 9 hearing on petitions challenging the government’s move to restrict access into and within the national capital, aimed at halting the October 10 youth protests demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. At the time of hearing, the protest was expected to happen at Jantar Mantar, the designated site for voicing dissent in the national capital.
The order said all the parties, including the petitioners, were in favour of finding an alternative protest site in Delhi.
Need for basic amenities
“During the course of hearing, it was suggested, and counsel for the parties were ad idem (of the same mind), that it is high time basic amenities were provided to those engaged in peaceful and lawful protest. To that end, suitable alternative sites capable of housing such infrastructure need to be identified and designated. Let the competent authority consider this suggestion and take an appropriate decision thereon,” the October 9 order said.
Previously, in August, the court had made a similar suggestion to Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, who was appearing for the Union government authorities. At the time, the court was hearing a petition filed by Satish Chand Kaushik, represented by advocate Aakarshan Aditya.
The petition had sought the discontinuation of Jantar Mantar as the ordinary designated venue for public protests and demonstrations, and to designate Ramlila Maidan, or another sufficiently large and secure ground, as the principal protest venue for the national capital.
As per a Standing Order on Guidelines For Holding Protests or Demonstrations in Delhi issued by Delhi Police Commissioner Anurag Kumar, Ramlila Maidan, Burari ground in north Delhi and CBD ground in East Delhi have been designated as new protest venues.
‘Golden rule’
In 2018, the top court had declared the “golden rule” that the right to protest must be balanced with the right of the residents to live peacefully. The observation had come in a decision lifting the ban on protests at Jantar Mantar and Boat Club.
“Democracy and dissent go hand in hand, but then the demonstrations expressing dissent have to be in designated places alone,” the court had noted.
In its 2020 judgment in the Shaheen Bagh case, the court had held that fundamental rights did not live in isolation. “The right of the protester has to be balanced with the right of the commuter. They have to co-exist in mutual respect,” the court had said in a judgment.
Published – October 12, 2026 04:47 pm IST
