Deployment, detention, surveillance: How Delhi Police kept Jantar Mantar off-limits
The entire strategy, from deploying security personnel and surveilling organisers to setting up temporary detention centres in stadiums, community centres and police stations across the city, was drawn up by senior police officials, the officers said.
In the days before yesterday's (10 October) protest, Delhi Police collected the home addresses, mobile numbers and social media accounts of the organisers, tracked their movements and checked hotel registers across the city, according to police officers who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Detentions across Delhi
On Saturday, police detained political leaders, key organisers of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), members of organisations backing the protest and even journalists at Delhi airport, hotels, guest houses and their homes.
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The entire strategy, from deploying security personnel and surveilling organisers to setting up temporary detention centres in stadiums, community centres and police stations across the city, was drawn up by senior police officials, the officers said.
"The overall supervision was being done by top officials in the Union Home Ministry. The instructions were to ensure there is no repeat of the Jantar Mantar 1.0 protest and to detain protesters wherever they are seen," one of the officers said, referring to the CJP's month-long protest at the site in July.
Multiple police teams monitored social media and tracked the movements of CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke and co-convenors Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, activists Yogendra Yadav and Prashant Bhushan, and student leaders, including Neha Bora, a second officer said.
Personal details of key individuals collected
"Personal details of all important individuals, including CJP and student leaders, such as their residential addresses, mobile numbers and social media accounts, were collected and shared with police teams for electronic surveillance and ground monitoring. Officials from the crime branch and special cell were also asked to track their movements," the second officer said.
The surveillance enabled police to track Dipke, Das and Ranka in Mumbai and detain them at Delhi airport after their flight landed, the officers said.
Plainclothes personnel were also stationed outside the homes, hotels, guest houses and other establishments where key organisers were staying, according to the officers. Police vehicles were parked nearby to follow them when they moved, one of the officers said.
For two to three days before the protest, beat officers visited hotels and guest houses across Delhi, asking staff whether people had checked in as groups.
"The strategy helped us identify who was staying where. Such guests included independent journalists. Accordingly, personnel and police vehicles were deployed. Many people were detained as they left hotels and guest houses and tried to march towards Jantar Mantar. A few were even asked to stay inside if they did not want to be detained," the first officer said.
Accounts of being followed and detained
Among the first to be detained was CJP legal head Ratna Singh, who was picked up near her home in Jangpura around 9am after returning there. Around 20-25 police personnel had been stationed outside her home since Friday.
"The police personnel blocked our car with their vehicles and told me that I was not allowed to move towards Jantar Mantar. They kept me detained inside their vehicle until 5pm. After that, they told me to stay inside my house. I even called the police control room and filed a plea in court, seeking an FIR against my illegal detention. The policemen had been tailing me since Friday," Singh said.
The plea was filed at the Saket courts but was dismissed by the court as "defective" in form.
Activist Yogendra Yadav posted videos on social media claiming that police personnel in a white vehicle were following him as he travelled towards Jantar Mantar. In one video, he said he feared he would be kidnapped.
He later joined Neha Bora, head of the All India Students' Association (AISA), advocate Prashant Bhushan and other protesters marching towards Dilli Haat at INA Market. Police subsequently detained them and put them on buses.
HT contacted Delhi Police and the Union Home Ministry for comment but had not received a response by the time of publication.
