Trains To Be Stopped, Metro Services To Be Shut, Precautionary Detentions: How Government Prepares For Cockroaches Reaching Delhi
New Delhi: Capital security forces and other government agencies have swung into action with unprecedented measures across National Capital Region (NCR) borders ahead of a massive planned demonstration set for Saturday, 10 October. Authorities are bracing for thousands of activists affiliated with the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), allied opposition groups and student organisations attempting to converge on central Delhi’s Jantar Mantar.
The agitation comes amidst escalating political tensions over demands for the immediate resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and the complete nation-wide suspension of the ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process. This protest is continuation of the ongoing nationwide unrest as crore an of voters have been left out of the electoral rolls.
The Union Home Ministry, in close coordination with the Delhi Police and state transport authorities, has devised an aggressive containment strategy to stop protesters from reaching the heart of the city.
Heavy barricading has been erected across key inter-state border checkpoints, including Singhu, Tikri, Ghazipur, and Badarpur. Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagrik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) has been clamped down across Central Delhi, prohibiting gatherings of five or more people. Announcements in the a regard have been made across Delhi on Thursday night covering residential areas, possible protest sites and mosques, which has invited allegations of targeted profiling by state agencies.
In a move aimed at preventing mass transit mobilisation, transport officials have confirmed that select long-distance passenger trains traveling toward New Delhi, Nizamuddin and Old Delhi railway stations will face temporary short-terminations or diversions outside the capital’s perimeter. These stoppages will start from morning 4 am and will counter till 2.00 pm in the afternoon, reports said.
Furthermore, the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) has issued guidance warning that several central interchange nodes—including Central Secretariat, Patel Chowk, Janpath, and Rajiv Chowk—may see operational closures and restricted exit gates on 10 October based on real-time police instructions.
Over the past 48 hours, law enforcement agencies have initiated widespread preventive operations across NCR districts. Scores of political organisers, student leaders, and field mobilisers have been placed under precautionary detention or served statutory notices warning against organising unauthorized assemblies, in NCR and parts of the country.
Delhi Police explicitly denied formal permission for the CJP’s October 10 agitation, citing public order concerns and previous violations of protest guidelines.
“On October 7, 2026, an application from Sourav Das, Co-Convenor of the Cockroach Janata Party, was received in the New Delhi District. As per the application, an intimation was given regarding a protest to be held at Jantar Mantar on October 10 concerning the accountability of the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC). Upon processing this intimation, it was found that the notice was received at very short notice. Under current guidelines, an application to organise an event at Jantar Mantar must be submitted at least 10 days prior to the scheduled date. It is also important to note that, based on the past conduct of the CJP on a separate occasion, undertakings and lawful directions given previously were not followed. In light of the non-compliance with prescribed procedures, the failure to adhere to past legal directions, and the current state of public safety, law and order, and traffic regulation, permission for the proposed protest at Jantar Mantar is hereby denied,” addressing a press conference on CJP’s proposed protest on October 10, Joint Commissioner of Police, Nupur Prasad said.
However, key organisers have maintained that demonstrations will proceed regardless of permissions, urging cadres to establish secondary leadership structures in case top organisers are taken into custody prior to the rally.
In an additional measures designed to curb potential unrest, the Delhi government’s Excise Department ordered the full closure of liquor shops across the capital on October 9 and 10 as a preventive step to maintain tranquility.
