Because of its narrow lanes and proximity to sensitive buildings and offices, former IPS officer Kiran Bedi has backed the decision to de-notify Jantar Mantar as a protest site, saying the location was ill-suited for demonstrations.
Her remarks come after the Delhi Police, in an order issued on October 11, designated Ramlila Maidan, Burari Maidan and CBD Ground in Shahdara as alternative venues for protests.
In a post on X, Bedi said every city needed designated spaces for democratic expression, arguing that the administration had erred in choosing Jantar Mantar and failed to correct the decision earlier. “During my lifetime of policing the city of Delhi, I have seen protest sites shift from the PM’s residence and Teen Murti Marg (then Mrs Gandhi’s residence) to the roads of Lutyens’ Delhi in the early 1970s, then to India Gate in the 1980s, and later to Jantar Mantar,” she wrote. “Every city requires an open space for democratic expression, which we also call a protest, but forgets to provide for,” she added.
She had called for restricting protest permissions to Ramlila Ground in an interview with ANI news agency. She argued that demonstrations should be held away from sensitive areas around Parliament and major commercial hubs. Because of its narrow lanes, proximity to sensitive buildings and offices, and location near Connaught Place, a major commercial hub, bedi urged city planners to take note, arguing that Jantar Mantar was the least suited to serve as a protest site.
