The Bombay High Court at Goa ordered the release of six Congress for the Protection of Rights (CJP) members late on Sunday after they were detained at Azad Maidan in Panaji, where they had gathered to protest against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls. A habeas corpus petition lodged on behalf of the detainees prompted a specially convened overnight hearing, from which the release order arose.

A two-judge bench comprising Justices Valmiki Menezes and Amit Jamsandekar ordered the detained protesters freed after senior advocate Norma Alvares placed her submissions before the court. The group was brought by bus from Pernem police station to Panaji and walked free at roughly 9.40 pm following their earlier detention and transfer between the two facilities.

A noon sitting on Monday was set for the bench to examine how the detentions unfolded and why the protesters were moved from Panaji to Pernem.

CJP Goa coordinated the demonstration as part of a countrywide campaign calling on Kumar to step down over reported irregularities tied to the SIR exercise. A request by the party to stage a public event at Azad Maidan on 11 October was not authorised by the administration, whose decision rested on an adverse assessment submitted by the North Goa Superintendent of Police.

Attendees, including activists and supporters, made their way to the venue on Sunday notwithstanding the earlier refusal of permission. Officers took up positions around Azad Maidan and erected barriers along its perimeter, turning away those who sought to enter the grounds. During the clashes, a group of demonstrators broke through into the building, after which authorities took six people into custody.

Among those taken into custody were Jack Sukhija, a member of CCP Corporation, along with CJP Goa volunteers Amreen Shaikh, Aditya Parulekar, Bhupesh Bind, Liston Noronha, Shamiro Fernandes, and Milind Rane. Those who took part in the protests stated that their personal devices were taken from them during their time in custody. Questions about the phones and the conditions under which the arrests took place were raised as part of the court proceedings.

After entry to Azad Maidan was unavailable, protesters converged on M G Road, holding up vehicle movement along the route for close to an hour. After reassembling at a short distance away, the group made their way to the Municipal Garden — commonly referred to as Garcia de Orta Garden — where the demonstration continued.

Justice Ferdino Rebello, who previously served as Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court, attended the location and raised questions about the legal grounds on which organisers had been told they could not hold the demonstration. He objected to the limits placed on the demonstrators and expressed support for the movement. In raising the matter of the Azad Maidan demonstration ban, Justice Rebello put forward the position that the constitutional freedoms of assembly and expression belong to every citizen, pressing for an explanation of why those gathered there had been turned away.

The 'Enough Is Enough' movement lent its backing to the protest, with environmentalist Claude Alvares and Norma Alvares — who holds a Padma Shri — among those who took part, pressing for greater accountability and transparency in electoral processes.

Submissions from counsel for the petitioners, the public prosecutor, and police officers were placed before the High Court at a hearing that ran into the early hours. The panel ordered the detained individuals to be freed and set a follow-up session to examine whether the officers had acted within their lawful authority.

Demonstrations organised by the CJP over allegations tied to the SIR process had spread across the country by the time the court intervened. Opposition parties and civil society groups have questioned how the Election Commission has handled the electoral roll revision exercise, with calls growing for the process to be made more transparent.

At Monday's follow-up hearing, attention was set to turn to how the protesters came to be held and transported to Pernem, along with the rationale put forward by authorities for taking that course of action.