Newdelhi,Oct 10, 2026 00:08 ISTLeft parties on Friday condemned the restrictions imposed ahead of the October 10 mobilisation against the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls and the Election Commission's functioning, and demanded that the Delhi Police allow protesters to assemble at Jantar Mantar in the national capital.
In a joint statement, the parties said the denial of permission for the demonstration, extensive barricading, prohibitory orders, the closure of 45 metro stations, the cancellation of trains heading to Delhi, and alleged house arrests in different parts of the country were aimed at stopping the mobilisation. The crackdown comes as the Cockroach Janta Party prepares for a massive demonstration at Jantar Mantar on Saturday.
The joint statement, issued by the CPI(M), CPI, CPI(ML)-Liberation, Revolutionary Socialist Party and All India Forward Bloc, said there were reports of students being detained in various places and of student organisations' offices being kept under surveillance. The parties said the curbs were also causing inconvenience to the general public, demanding that authorities stop intimidation and permit the protest.
CPI(M) general secretary M A Baby said the Supreme Court had heard the challenge to the restrictions on movement in Delhi. According to Baby, the court observed that while the government could regulate movement, it could not stop traffic altogether, as students, workers and ordinary citizens also needed to travel.
The Supreme Court on Friday directed the Centre to ensure there was no complete prohibition on metro and train services to Delhi, saying it could not bring everything to a halt. The top court noted that law enforcement agencies could restrict unruly movement, but ordinary citizens should not be unduly harassed, while the Solicitor General agreed to consider alternative protest sites.
CPI MP P Sandosh Kumar separately wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi demanding that Jantar Mantar be opened for the demonstration, metro stations reopened, and the detention of activists halted. Kumar criticized the heavy barricading and transport restrictions for preventing participants from reaching the capital.
CPI(ML) Liberation general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya criticized the security apparatus, stating that cancelled trains and closed metro stations had turned Delhi into a paramilitary cantonment. The joint statement was signed by leaders of multiple left organisations as they pressed their demand for the protest to proceed at Jantar Mantar.