Around 14,000 police personnel, including 10,000 men and 4,000 women, were deployed for the protest. The deployment included Delhi Police and CAPF personnel, along with forces from Uttar Pradesh, Haryana and Rajasthan.
The first few hours of October 10 saw the police and security forces throwing a wide net across the New Delhi area, as the traffic restrictions put in place by the Delhi Police kicked in at 6 a.m., even as early-bird protesters who had come from the NCR regions like Gurugram and Faridabad managed to reach the Ashoka Road side entrance to the Jantar Mantar protest site.
As security forces started blocking more roads along key roads of New Delhi like Janpath and Ashoka Road, police personnel held debriefing sessions with large numbers of officials who were seen carrying tear gas munitions.
By 9 a.m., at least five protesters who had managed to reach the Ashoka Road entrance to the protest site were detained by security personnel and boarded onto buses that had surrounded the area.
Shaheena, 63, from Gurugram, reached Jantar Mantar at 6 a.m. after leaving her home at around 5 a.m. “We thought we should leave early because it would have been more difficult later. It was so important for me to be here because we need to save our democracy from this ruling BJP government. Our entire citizenship is being questioned through the SIR process.” Ms Shaheena, married to a professor at IIT Delhi, is at Jantar Mantar with her daughter, who also made a poster.
Ms. Shaheena and her daughter seemed to be the only protesters at the Ashoka Road side entry to the Jantar Mantar protest site at 6 a.m. However, busloads of security personnel intermittently enter the Jantar Mantar protest site from this side. Shaheena and her daughter Sabika (36) were detained. “I couldn’t see where they took her in the crowd of security personnel. I think she may have been out on one of the buses. I don’t know who to speak to about it,” Ms. Shaheena told The Hindu before she was detained.
A loudspeaker keeps making announcements warning media personnel to not report from amongst the protesters or enter any crowd of protesters and report the events from a distance that does not obstruct police personnel.
Geetika, a 25-year-old software engineer, who lives in Faridabad, also showed up at the Jantar Mantar protest site early in the morning.
“Usually, our country has seen serious enquiries whenever such serious allegations are made, like the ones against the CEC in the Indian Express report. But where is the investigation? Why is there no inquiry into such serious charges?” she told The Hindu. She said that she left her home at 4 a.m. without telling her family because “It is now or never”. She added, “The news we heard of the intense security arrangements all day yesterday made me scared. But that is also what made me decide finally that I have to come here to protest.”
Meanwhile, the Ashoka Road-Jantar Mantar Road roundabout is swarmed with uniformed personnel of the Delhi Police and security forces. Women personnel of the Delhi Police were wearing pink jackets over their uniforms.
The Hindu saw two male protesters being detained by security personnel and taken inside a bus.
Residents of Jantar Mantar Road were also stopped by police. A couple wanted to visit the Hanuman Temple to perform pitru paksh rituals, but they weren’t allowed to proceed further despite showing ID cards.
Elsewhere, a man who raised the “Tanashashi nahi chalegi” slogan near the Delhi Police Headquarters was immediately detained by three police officials.
Following the detention, a senior police official posted there said, “Jiske munh se aawaz bhi nikali, usko patak ke gaadi mein da ado denge [anyone who makes any noise will be immediately detained].”
Another 50 police officials were immediately called and stationed at this spot.
At Bangla Sahib Gurdwara, a number of protesters who were being detained ran into the Gurdwara for cover. The Delhi Police is now outside asking them to come out.
