Security personnel run towards demonstrators to disperse them during a protest organised by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar over alleged electoral roll irregularities, at Connaught Place, in New Delhi, Saturday, October 10. PTI
Delhi protests LIVE | Over 7,000 detained; CJP: Will march to Jantar Mantar again on Sunday
SC to hear special petition tomorrow on Delhi curbs; police go on detention spree to stop anti-CEC protests
Delhi turned into a veritable battle zone—as well as a prison zone for the Opposition—on Saturday (October 10), when several INDIA bloc leaders, including four former chief ministers—TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee, CPM veteran Pinarayi Vijayan, AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal, and Manik Sarkar, were detained for trying to join the Cockroach Janta Party's (CJP) anti-CEC protest call at Jantar Mantar.
Apart from Mamata and Pinarayi, Delhi Police have detained over 7,000 people including CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke, YouTuber Dhruv Rathee, CJP's Ratna Singh, Sourav Das and many journalists and content creators.
Senior Left leaders like MP John Brittas and MA Baby, along with Pinarayi, were taken to Chhatrasal Stadium briefly before reportedly being driven around in a police jeep, Brittas alleged. They were later taken to Mandir Marg Police Station. Veteran Left leader Brinda Karat, CPI(ML) Liberation general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya, activist Yogendra Yadav and lawyer Prashant Bhushan were also among those detained.
Also read: Meet the faces of India’s Gen Z protest movement
Kejriwal was detained outside his Lodhi Estate residence while marching towards Jantar Mantar with AAP leaders and workers. The party leaders detained with him included Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Singh, Delhi unit chief Saurabh Bharadwaj, MLA Kuldeep Kumar and national media in-charge Anurag Dhanda. Senior AAP leader Gopal Rai was also detained while protesting at the party office.
Dipke detained from aircraft
Mamata and other TMC MPs were detained from South Avenue, while many journalists trying to cover the protests were allegedly detained along with the Opposition leaders. Tushar Gandhi, Mahatma Gandhi's great-grandson, was reportedly detained in Mumbai.
Also read: ‘Undeclared Emergency’: Opposition leaders slam Modi govt over detentions in Delhi
Dipke's detention was dramatic. A Delhi Police team boarded the aircraft carrying him after it landed in Delhi and detained him. Dipke went live on Instagram as the officers entered the plane. The video shows the police team boarding the flight, and Dipke, along with fellow CJP members Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, being detained on board.
A defiant Dipke said CJP's Ajinkya Shinde would lead the Jantar Mantar protest, while AISA chief Neha Bora launched a protest in Dilli Haat along with other activists. Neha was alsod detained soon afterwards. After days of intense protests, Congress was missing in action as Rahul Gandhi left for Chennai for his prescheduled Chhatron ki Goonj event.
Jantar Mantar wears a deserted look
Jantar Mantar, a designated protest site, wore a deserted look throughout the day, with the deployment of over 30,000 security personnel and waves of barricades in Lutyens' Delhi to keep the protesters away from the area.
Opposition parties likened the situation to one worse than the Emergency, with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi urging the youth to "keep protesting" and asserting that "we are going to ensure that this regime and the people who have attacked the Constitution are defeated".
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge lashed out at the Modi government over the detentions by Delhi police, saying it has turned the "mother of democracy" into a "muzzled democracy". The Congress chief alleged that the cowardice of the BJP-RSS is on full display today.
The Congress, which has been holding protests demanding the resignation of the CEC over alleged vote theft, however, maintained its distance from the CJP protest.
CJP to march to Jantar Mantar again tomorrow
On Saturday evening, CJP said it was not "backing down" and announced that it will march to Jantar Mantar again tomorrow (October 11).
"The Modi government fears that if we unite again, their throne will be at stake. But we’re not backing down. We will march to Jantar Mantar again tomorrow and stay there until all our demands are met," CJP said.
Read live updates here.
Live Updates
- 10 Oct 2026 8:15 AM IST
Drones also deployed
Drones in action!
#WATCH | Delhi: Drones being used to monitor the security situation around the roundabout near Hotel Le Méridien, ahead of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) protest today. https://t.co/y93a41TzMd
— ANI (@ANI) October 10, 2026 - 10 Oct 2026 7:52 AM IST
Over 50 Metro stations to be shut
Stringent traffic restrictions came into force across the national capital from 6 am on Saturday ahead of the protests at Jantar Mantar by the CJP.
Police personnel were out in large numbers across the capital, manning barricades and keeping a close watch on vehicular movement as security was stepped up ahead of the demonstration. The heightened security comes amid traffic curbs, metro restrictions, train cancellations and a mobile internet suspension in parts of the national capital.
Delhi Traffic Police has warned of disruptions around Connaught Place, Mandi House, Jantar Mantar, Patel Chowk and other key intersections in central Delhi. The diversions, which began at 6 am, will be regulated according to the prevailing law and order situation.
According to the traffic advisory, the affected stretches include the Ashoka Road-Jantar Mantar Road roundabout, Tolstoy Marg-Janpath crossing, Jai Singh Road-Sansad Marg crossing, Rail Bhawan roundabout, Patel Chowk, Gol Dak Khana and Windsor Place.
Traffic movement may also be affected at Mandi House, the Chelmsford Road and Sansad Marg intersections with Connaught Place's outer circle, the Barakhamba Road intersection and the Minto Road-Deen Dayal Upadhyay Marg junction.
Other locations include the Chelmsford Road-Connaught Place outer circle intersection, Bharion Road-Mahatma Gandhi Marg intersection, Lodhi Road flyover, Neela Gumbad roundabout, Madarsa T-point, Samrat Hotel roundabout, Sardar Patel Marg-Panchsheel Marg crossing, the underpasses beneath the Bhikaji Cama Place and Moti Bagh flyovers, and the Ring Road-San Martin Marg intersection.
Visuals showed a heavy police presence around the protest site early in the morning, with personnel stationed along the roads and at barricades across the city. Traffic continued to move smoothly as police kept a close watch on vehicles entering and leaving the area, stopping and checking some cars.
Commuters have been advised to avoid non-essential travel and factor in additional time for their journeys. Those travelling to railway stations, inter-state bus terminals or the airport through New Delhi and central Delhi have been asked to plan accordingly.
The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation had announced the closure of entry and exit gates at 57 metro stations from 9 pm on Friday until the situation normalised on Saturday. A 24-hour mobile internet suspension in central Delhi came into effect at 10 pm on Friday. The traffic police said restrictions would be adjusted based on real-time assessments of the situation and could be relaxed or tightened as required.
- 10 Oct 2026 7:29 AM IST
Metro travellers, take note
Over 40 Metro stations in Delhi could be shut
#WATCH | Delhi: For security reasons, the entry and exit of some of the metro stations have been closed.
(Visuals from Central Secretariat metro station) https://t.co/bkcvuVeCkT
— ANI (@ANI) October 10, 2026 - 10 Oct 2026 7:27 AM IST
View from Apsara border
View from Apsara border
#WATCH | Delhi: Heavy security has been deployed at the Apsara Border ahead of the protest today at Jantar Mantar. https://t.co/qFpPItlupB
— ANI (@ANI) October 10, 2026 - 10 Oct 2026 7:26 AM IST
From Delhi streets: RAF in action
#WATCH | Delhi: The RAF has been deployed at Firoz Shah Road, Mandi House, ahead of the protest today at Jantar Mantar. https://t.co/3oGqIqwIUz
— ANI (@ANI) October 10, 2026 - 10 Oct 2026 7:09 AM IST
Abhijeet Dipke, Ashutosh Ranka and Saurav Das soon expected to land in Delhi
Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke and leaders Ashutosh Ranka and Saurav Das will arrive at Terminal 3 of the Indira Gandhi International Airport on Saturday morning.
The CJP leaders also condemned the alleged detention of people travelling to the capital for the demonstration.
In a statement, CJP alleged that 15-30 students and members travelling from Pune were forced to deboard the Goa Express at Itarsi Junction in Madhya Pradesh and detained by police and Government Railway Police personnel.
The organisation also said activists travelling from West Bengal, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh had been intercepted. In Rajasthan, CJP spokesperson Deepak Baliyan and his brother were allegedly assaulted by police, leaving them seriously injured, it claimed.
CJP alleged that some detainees were being sent back to their home states against their wishes and pressured to sign good-behaviour bonds to prevent them from joining the protest. It demanded their immediate release and safe passage for those travelling to Delhi.
The organisation also condemned reported train cancellations, metro station closures and a temporary suspension of mobile internet services in parts of central Delhi, describing the restrictions as an assault on democratic rights.
In a video message late at night, Dipke said Saturday's protest in Delhi should not stop even if he was detained. "Tomorrow is our march. I don't know what will happen to me, whether I will be arrested from the airport or will be later arrested. I will not be cowed down because we want to save the democracy in the country. I am not scared even if I am detained. The government can slap us with NSA or UAPA," Dipke said.
The National Security Act (NSA) and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) are considered to be stringent criminal laws.
The CJP wants free and fair polls and that cannot happen without CEC Kumar's resignation or scrapping of SIR or framing of a neutral procedure to appoint election commissioner, Dipke said.
- 10 Oct 2026 7:06 AM IST
Persons with criminal antecedents picked up
Delhi Police has detained people with criminal records across all 15 districts of the national capital as part of preventive measures ahead of the Cockroach Janta Party's (CJP) proposed protest at Jantar Mantar.
According to sources, around 30 to 40 people with criminal records have been picked up from all 15 districts as the police stepped up security arrangements to maintain law and order. Police are also keeping a close watch on the movements of certain people who could mobilise people or influence them to participate in the proposed demonstration, the source said.
Surveillance has been intensified outside the residences of such people as part of the security measures, added the source. Security arrangements have been tightened across Delhi in view of the proposed protest.
- 10 Oct 2026 6:55 AM IST
Serious law and order concerns, say Dehi police
The Delhi Police has cited the possibility of "serious" law and order concerns and inconvenience to residents and citizens to deny permission to the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) for its proposed protest at Jantar Mantar on October 10.
In a letter addressed to the party's co-convenor Saurav Das and joint secretary Balkrishna, the Deputy Commissioner of Police, New Delhi district, said granting permission for the demonstration could lead to serious law-and-order issues.
"In the larger public interest, the permission sought cannot be granted and is hereby denied," the letter stated.
The police also pointed out that the communication received from the outfit regarding the proposed protest was merely an intimation and not a duly submitted application seeking permission.
According to the letter, the guidelines require applications for holding programmes at Jantar Mantar to be submitted at least 10 days before the proposed date.
Police further cited previous instances of alleged violations of protest conditions, including demonstrations continuing beyond the stipulated time limits, which had resulted in law and order issues.
