On Monday, the INDIA bloc's planned march to the Supreme Court over contested election results prompted a security deployment across central Delhi. Among its listed demands, the coalition called for Gyanesh Kumar to step down from his post as Chief Election Commissioner, while also appealing to people nationwide to take part in the ongoing protest movement.
The INDIA bloc's objection to CEC Gyanesh Kumar followed by roughly 48 hours a similar demonstration raised by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) directed at the same official. A broadcast by a news outlet described as reputable triggered the demonstration led by the CJP, with its report pointing to purported procedural irregularities and a divide within the election commission — a body whose two remaining commissioners had already put forward objections over the conduct of the Special Intensive Revision exercise.
On Sunday, Rahul Gandhi of the Congress party announced that the bloc would return to the streets on Monday, stating that Delhi Police and Bharatiya Janata Party workers had carried out acts of violence against students and women at the CJP-led demonstration — a characterisation his party put forward as the basis for renewed mobilisation.
No confirmation had yet emerged about which leaders planned to attend, though Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge of the Congress party were expected to be joined at the demonstration by Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee. Banerjee, taken into custody on 10 October during the CJP-organised demonstration, was set to join the alliance's procession directed at CEC Gyanesh Kumar.
Alongside the call for Kumar's departure, the INDIA bloc laid out two further positions: an end to what it characterised as "vote chori," and a halt to the Special Intensive Revision exercise — a voter-roll process initiated in Bihar that the bloc contended had led to upwards of 13 crore names being removed from the electoral register since the exercise commenced the previous year.
Barriers were placed at multiple points around the area, and the security presence was strengthened accordingly. Between 6:00 am and 4:00 pm, select Metro station gates were to remain shut for both arrivals and departures, while Barakhamba Road — in the vicinity of Mandi House — saw reinforced security through the placement of Rapid Action Force (RAF) and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel alongside regular staff.
Six stations along the Delhi Metro network — Patel Chowk, Janpath, Rajiv Chowk, Mandi House, Central Secretariat, and Barakhamba Road — were among those scheduled for temporary closure. Route changes were set to begin at 6:00 am on Monday, with vehicle movement through New Delhi and Central Delhi subject to adjustment or restriction based on how the security situation unfolded on the ground.
Traffic tie-ups were anticipated across a wide band of the city, taking in the historic districts around Lutyens' Delhi and Connaught Place, key central roads, north-south links, stretches of Ring Road, and parts of southern Delhi.
