New Delhi, October 2: Delhi Police detained Neha Bora, national president of the All India Students’ Association (AISA), during a protest near Jantar Mantar on Friday. The demonstration was organised around demands concerning Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and alleged irregularities related to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
According to reports, Bora was among several student leaders, activists and political figures detained as police moved to prevent protesters from gathering at Jantar Mantar. Former Delhi Chief Minister Atishi, AAP Delhi chief Saurabh Bharadwaj and activist Yogendra Yadav were also among those detained.
The size of the gathering has been reported differently during the day. Delhi Police officials cited by NDTV said more than 700 protesters were detained from and around Jantar Mantar, while an earlier Indian Express report put the number at around 500.
The claim that “only 200 people came to Jantar Mantar and all were party members of AISA, SFI and AAP” should therefore be treated as a claim rather than an established fact. Earlier police statements reported that around 200 protesters from AISA, SFI and other student and civil-society organisations had attempted to march towards Jantar Mantar, while Friday’s later police estimates were substantially higher.
The protest took place amid heightened security in central Delhi. Police had said beforehand that permission had not been granted for the proposed gathering and had deployed additional security personnel and barricades around routes leading to Jantar Mantar
