Congress Gets Permission For Ramlila Protest Rally. But There Are Conditions

The Congress-led INDIA bloc has received a no-objection certificate (NOC) from Delhi Police for its November 1 rally at Ramlila Maidan against alleged electoral irregularities, but the permission comes with a set of conditions related to crowd management, CCTV surveillance, speeches, transport and the time by which the gathering must disperse.

The opposition alliance plans to hold its biggest rally against alleged "vote chori", or theft of votes, demanding accountability over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. The Congress has set a target of gathering 10 lakh people for the event and is mobilising party workers and supporters from across the country.

According to the police, the Congress has been granted a no-objection certificate for booking Ramlila Maidan from October 25 to November 3, subject to permission from the authority that owns the land. The rally itself is scheduled for November 1, between 10 am and 5 pm.

The organisers have also been directed to install high-definition cameras at strategic locations, including the entry and exit gates, the stage, the surrounding areas of Ramlila Maidan and the seating enclosures. The surveillance arrangements must include recording facilities, monitoring systems with at least five screens and a dedicated CCTV control room.

The organisers must provide sufficient water tankers and toilet blocks, with separate facilities for women, and deploy an adequate number of volunteers to manage the gathering. The volunteers must wear identical clothing or carry common badges so that they can be identified easily.

One of the explicit conditions is that the rally must end at 5 pm on November 1, after which the dispersal must begin. The police have said the programme cannot be extended under any circumstances.

The organisers must also ensure that participants do not stay overnight at Ramlila Maidan, either before or after the rally. All buses, cars, tempos and other vehicles must be parked at locations designated by the traffic police.

The police have further instructed the organisers to ensure that the rally remains peaceful and that participants do not engage in unruly or rowdy behaviour. 

The police have also prohibited any march towards a destination other than Ramlila Maidan. 

Congress general secretary KC Venugopal on Saturday met the heads of the party's frontal organisations at the All India Congress Committee headquarters at Indira Bhawan in Delhi. He subsequently held a meeting with office-bearers of the Delhi Congress to review arrangements for the rally.

AICC treasurer Ajay Maken also attended the discussions.

The November 1 rally has been preceded by a dispute over permission for another INDIA bloc programme planned for October 30, which the Congress had intended as a curtain-raiser to its main rally.

The party had alleged that it was denied permission to hold an event at the government-run Ashok Hotel, where 21 INDIA bloc parties planned a symbolic "public impeachment" of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

On October 12, opposition figures and activists participated in a 'March for Democracy' in the national capital.