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Delhi HC asks police how it could impose ‘blanket ban’ on anti-reservation protest at Jantar Mantar
The police had granted permission to the Karni Sena for a demonstration on September 20, but withdrew it, apprehending that a large crowd would gather.
The Delhi High Court on Thursday asked the police how it could impose a “blanket ban” on protests at Jantar Mantar against caste-based reservations in jobs and education and the University Grants Commission’s January regulations to address discrimination in colleges, reported Live Law.
The police had earlier granted permission to the Rajput group Karni Sena for a protest at Jantar Mantar on September 20, the petitioner told the court. However, it withdrew the permission on Tuesday, apprehending that a bigger crowd than what was permitted would turn up.
Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma asked the police how permission could be entirely denied “just because you apprehend that some people will come”.
Sharma said the police could “put any restrictions or conditions” and that the protesters would “be there only for a few hours”.
Appearing for the Delhi Police, Additional Solicitor General Chetan Sharma said that Jantar Mantar “is a very sensitive area”. He added that “whenever there is a concentration in Jantar Mantar it affects the entire central government”, Bar and Bench reported.
“Others also we have refused,” said Chetan Sharma. “It is not that they have been singled out. The amount of likes and social media dissemination is so much, the executive thinks it will overspill.”
The court then asked if the protest could be allowed at a different venue, which the police said it would consider.
The Kshatriya Karni Sena had initially sought permission to hold a demonstration at Jantar Mantar on September 6. However, the Delhi Police had denied the request on August 28, citing preparations for the BRICS Summit.
The group approached the High Court against the refusal. On September 3, the court asked the organisers to consider changing the date, following which they decided to gather on September 20.
What do the UGC rules say?
The 2026 University Grants Commission Promotion of Equity in Higher Education Institutions Regulations required institutes to set up special committees, helplines and monitoring teams to address complaints, particularly from members of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes.
The commission had in 2012 first released equity rules for higher education institutes, which required them to set up Equal Opportunity Cells and Anti-Discrimination Officers. However, those rules did not provide for action against institutions that did not comply with them.
In contrast, the 2026 rules required the commission to set up a monitoring committee to oversee their implementation.
Institutes that do not comply with the regulations could be barred from participating in the commission’s schemes, offering degree programmes and online courses, and could be removed from the list of institutes eligible to receive central grants.
The rules had led to protests by upper-caste students who argued that it could lead to discrimination against them. The protesters contended that the rules were biased against students from the general category as they did not provide for measures against “false complaints”.
On January 29, the Supreme Court stayed by the rules, observing that their provisions were “prima facie vague and capable of misuse”.
Edited by Sneha.
