18% GST on booking Ramlila Maidan as protest site as Rahul Gandhi’s INDIA bloc rally on Nov 1; what are other charges?

The INDIA bloc will organise a mega rally and a "Chalo Dilli" march at Delhi's Ramlila Maidan on November 1, 2026, to protest against alleged voter manipulation through the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and seek the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

Booking Ramlila Maidan for a day reportedly involves an expenditure of ₹1,21,080, including an 18% Goods and Services Tax (GST). The charges include ground rent, security deposits, sanitation fees and licence charges.

Rahul Gandhi announces march to Ramlila Maidan on November 1

Lok Sabha Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi on Saturday invited people to join a march in the national capital ahead of the INDIA bloc's scheduled rally.

In a post on X, Gandhi shared the proposed route and timing, announcing that the march would begin at the Minto Road junction near Connaught Place at noon on Sunday. Participants would proceed towards Ajmeri Gate before reaching Ramlila Maidan.

"See you tomorrow, let's walk together," he said.

However, news agency ANI, citing Delhi Police sources, reported that no permission had been sought for the proposed march starting from Connaught Place. Police had granted permission for the INDIA bloc rally at Ramlila Maidan, but this did not extend to the street procession.

Ramlila Maidan booking charges: What are the fees apart from 18% GST?

The MCD, which manages Ramlila Maidan, has a fee structure that includes the following components for a general one-day booking, according to an NDTV report:

The ₹50,000 security deposit is refundable, subject to applicable conditions. Excluding this amount, the other charges total ₹71,080.

However, the MCD subsequently clarified, according to a Times of India report, that protests at Ramlila Maidan would be permitted without rental charges, subject to a police no-objection certificate (NOC) and a refundable security payment of ₹5,000. Organisers must submit an offline application along with their organisation's letterhead and Aadhaar details.

Jantar Mantar removed: Which three locations are designated protest sites?

Delhi Police issued an order on October 11, removing Jantar Mantar from the list of designated protest venues and identifying three alternative locations for demonstrations.

The three locations are:

- Ramlila Maidan: Situated in central Delhi, the ground has traditionally hosted major political rallies, demonstrations and public gatherings. The MCD manages its bookings.

- Burari Ground: Located in north Delhi, the venue is a large open ground managed by the Delhi Development Authority (DDA).

- CBD Ground: Situated in Shahdara in east Delhi, this is another designated demonstration venue under the DDA.

What does it cost to book other protest sites in Delhi?

The DDA manages bookings for CBD Ground and Burari Ground. However, separate rates for political demonstrations at these locations had not been finalised in the October reports.

According to NDTV, a test calculation on the DDA's online booking portal for a 3,000-square-metre plot at CBD Ground, under the social welfare event category, showed a security deposit of ₹95,832, sanitation charges of ₹9,982 and GST of ₹1,800. The total initial payment came to ₹1,07,614.

Excluding the refundable security deposit, the daily expense worked out to ₹11,782.

(Disclaimer: These calculations are indicative portal estimates and should not be treated as confirmed booking charges for protests.)

About the Author

Garvit Bhirani is a journalist based in Gurugram. He is a Deputy Chief Content Producer at LiveMint, where he covers national and international news stories, focusing on accuracy and compelling storytelling for readers. <br><br> With a total of six years of experience in journalism, he has previously worked with Vaco Binary Semantics for Google, taking on the role of news curation lead, and reported from the field on health, education, and agriculture stories for 101reporters and News9. He has also served as a content editor for entertainment and news media organisations. <br><br> Garvit holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in journalism and mass communication from Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University and Gurugram University, respectively. During college days, he joined India’s only non-profit student journalism network, where he anchored daily news updates and produced his own weekly show called ‘Data Fix’. <br><br> He was selected for the YES Foundation Media for Social Change Fellowship in Delhi, the Talking Data to the Fourth Pillar residential workshop, and the VOICE Fellowship in Pune. <br><br> He holds certificates in COVID-19-verification reporting, data journalism, food & agriculture, tech policy, media literacy and countering misinformation, and tackling election disinformation courses from Thomson Foundation, IndiaSpend, The Dialogue, US Mission in India, and AFP. <br><br> He can be reached on <a href="https://www.linkedin.com/in/garvit-bhirani">LinkedIn</a> or on <a href="https://x.com/GarvitBhirani">@garvitbhirani</a> on X