Policemen detained Cockroach Janta Party supporters during a demonstration demanding the resignation of the Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar near Bangla Sahib Gurudwara in New Delhi on Saturday. EXPRESS PHOTO BY PRAVEEN KHANNA
As the Capital turned into a fortress in the wake of a protest call by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, hundreds of demonstrators from across the city and other states took refuge in Gurdwara Bangla Sahib in New Delhi. On Saturday afternoon, over 100 demonstrators, who had gathered outside the gurdwara, around 1 km from the office of the Election Commission of India (ECI) at Ashoka Road, were detained by the police.
A staff member of the gurdwara management told The Indian Express that the police urged the gurdwara management to send the protesters out, but “the management refused to do so”.
“People have been peacefully sitting, sleeping and eating here. Anyone, who comes inside the gurdwara, is a visitor to us. Police are not allowed inside. Police can come only when there is a serious criminal incident, but these are students who have come to protest, which is their right. They cannot force them out… they are not criminals," the staff member said.
Policemen detained Cockroach Janta Party supporters during a demonstration demanding the resignation of the Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar near Bangla Sahib Gurudwara in New Delhi on Saturday. EXPRESS PHOTO BY PRAVEEN KHANNA
He said protesters were coming and going through the day. In the afternoon, some of them stepped outside the gurdwara’s main gate in groups and were detained.
Yash Sen, who came from Agra to attend the protest, said, “Any person who goes outside is being detained. I have been here since last night, and there were many others with me.”
Kamaljeet Singh, a devotee who came to Bangla Sahib along with his wife from Madhya Pradesh two days ago to offer prayers, said, “Since last night, around 1,000-2,000 student protesters have arrived at the gurdwara and are staying here. Early in the morning, around 8 am, police came to detain them, but the management did not allow them to enter the gurdwara. Some police personnel entered the premises near the main gate and dragged some students out, but the management firmly asked the police to leave and not enter the premises.”
Policemen detained Cockroach Janta Party supporters during a demonstration demanding the resignation of the Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar near Bangla Sahib Gurudwara in New Delhi on Saturday. EXPRESS PHOTO BY PRAVEEN KHANNA
Around 150-200 students were detained from outside the gurdwara, Singh added.
One of the protesters, Anuradha Mewara, said, “I came from Rajasthan to participate in the stir and demand the resignation of the Election Commissioner. I was detained outside the gurdwara. They made us go around in a bus and dropped us near the Red Fort.”
Some students inside the gurdwara said they were waiting for an update from the CJP on the protest. Yohan Makwana, who came from Gujarat, said, “We are all waiting for Ajinkya Shinde’s call and further updates.”
Afzal, a resident of Seelampur in Delhi, said, “I will come again tomorrow. We are waiting for the updates.”