Delhi Police Ends Jantar Mantar as Protest Site
Delhi Police have said Jantar Mantar in central Delhi will no longer be a designated protest site, an area where authorities permit organised demonstrations.
The announcement was made on 12 October. Police said it acted after the Supreme Court, India's top court, suggested identifying alternative protest sites with adequate infrastructure, according to BBC. Police later told the Delhi High Court that Jantar Mantar was denotified, or removed from the official list of protest areas, based on a Supreme Court order, according to The Hindu.
Protesters who would have gathered at Jantar Mantar have been directed to three other sites. They are Ramlila Ground, Burari Ground and CBD Ground in East Delhi, according to The Indian Express.
The change affects cost as well as location. Jantar Mantar was free to use for demonstrations. The three alternatives each charge tens of thousands of rupees, India's currency, a day, a daily fee that smaller groups would need to find before they can gather.
Jantar Mantar sits close to parliament, about 3km (1.86 miles) from Parliament House. It is an 18th-century astronomical observatory, a protected historic complex in the heart of the capital, built by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II in the 1720s.
It took on its protest role in 1993. Demonstrations were stopped at the Boat Club lawns opposite the old parliament building. Jantar Mantar then began serving as the designated site, a role it has held for more than three decades until this decision.
