Fresh tensions escalated in Delhi amid the ongoing protest led by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP). While the protest site at Jantar Mantar remained peaceful, tensions escalated on the Sansad Marg stretch, where protesters and security personnel clashed.
While security personnel hit protesters who had spilled on to Sansad Marg with tear gas shells, protesters pelted stones at police personnel and chased them on the main radial road of Connaught Place.
According to the Delhi Police, 5 police personnel – 2 ACPs, one inspector, one head constable and one constable, were injured.
Tear gas fired after crowd turns unruly near Park Hotel
The stretch from the Tolstoy Marg entry near Janpath to the NDMC Convention Centre saw no visible deployment of police or security personnel for some time, but police and paramilitary personnel were later seen stationed nearby in combat gear.
The situation became tense near Park Hotel on Sansad Marg, where the crowd allegedly turned unruly, following which tear gas shells were fired. A policeman was also chased and beaten by a section of the crowd.
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Following the escalation, police brought in volunteers from the protest site to appeal to demonstrators to remain calm and avoid stone pelting. The volunteers told protesters that such incidents could undo the efforts of the movement.
Police use loudspeaker appeals, move reinforcements
As efforts were made to bring the situation under control, a volunteer was placed on top of a police bus fitted with a loudspeaker. The bus moved through the Sansad Marg stretch while appeals were made to protesters to maintain peace.
A CJP volunteer was also seen standing atop a police vehicle, appealing to protesters to refrain from stone pelting.
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The crowd was also asked to sit on the road and stop sloganeering as authorities attempted to control the rising tension. The Jantar Mantar protest site, however, remained normal, with the area towards Sansad Marg cordoned off near the intersection using RPF and riot control vehicles.
Internet cut order around Jantar Mantar
Internet services were temporarily suspended in parts of central Delhi following an order issued to telecom service providers. A data alert informed users that internet services had been stopped in the area as per government instructions.
The order directed telecom companies to suspend internet services within a 1.5 km radius of Jantar Mantar from Wednesday evening 6 pm till Thursday 6 am.
CJP volunteers remove stones from protest area
Meanwhile, CJP volunteers were seen removing stones lying on roads and traffic islands around the Jantar Mantar monument park to prevent them from being used during the protest.
Police reinforcements were also moved towards the area, with a bus carrying Delhi Police personnel entering the stretch near the Parliament Street police station.
