16/10/2026
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16/10/2026
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NEW DELHI, Oct 16: A protest calling for the unfurling of the Indian national flag at Central Park in Connaught Place descended into chaos on Friday, with police detaining hundreds of demonstrators, according to reports, including Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke, All India Students’ Association (AISA) national president Neha Bora and Communist Party of India (Marxist) MP John Brittas.
The protest, organised under the slogan “Lehra Do Tiranga” (Unfurl the Tricolour), drew thousands of students, youth activists and political supporters to central Delhi despite heavy security arrangements and restrictions around the venue.
Demonstrators said they wanted to unfurl the national flag, sing the national anthem and disperse peacefully. After being denied entry to Central Park, protesters marched around Connaught Place, climbed onto vehicles and raised the tricolour, while tensions mounted between demonstrators and security personnel.
By Friday evening, the number of protesters had reportedly grown to several thousand. At least 150 people were said to have been detained during the day, although the higher figure of hundreds of detentions was also reported. The total number could not be independently confirmed.
The protest raised questions among participants about whether unfurling the national flag at the location should be treated as an offence.
CJP founder, AISA president detained
Dipke was reportedly detained outside his temporary residence in Jhandewalan, while Bora was taken into custody in the Mandi House area, where AISA members had assembled before marching towards Jantar Mantar.
The detentions triggered chaotic scenes as protesters, journalists, camera crews and large numbers of security personnel converged at the two locations.
The CJP alleged in a post on X that Dipke had been taken to an undisclosed location and was not being allowed to speak to his lawyers. The organisation demanded information about his whereabouts and questioned the treatment of its founder.
AISA described Bora’s detention as an “abduction”, alleging that she was taken away in a vehicle with blackened windows accompanied by two people in civilian clothes who were not detainees.
A subsequent post from Bora’s team claimed she was being held at the Anti-Narcotic Task Force facility in Manglapuri. However, her presence at that location could not be independently confirmed.
In a letter to Delhi Police, Bora’s lawyers alleged that when they sought access to her, police officials removed her from the facility and began taking her to another location.
As of the report, the whereabouts of both Dipke and Bora remained unclear.
Left parties join march; MP Brittas also detained
Several youth and student organisations, including the Students’ Federation of India, Democratic Youth Federation of India, All India Students’ Federation and All India Youth Federation, joined the march towards Connaught Place.
CPI(M) MP John Brittas also participated, saying the demonstrators had intended to march peacefully, sing the national anthem and disperse without causing disruption.
“Our decision was to march, sing the national anthem, and disperse peacefully. It’s a peaceful march. We don’t want to create any problem here for anybody. But the police are unnecessarily using force,” Brittas told reporters.
In a post on X, Brittas said students and youth activists had defied the restrictions and returned to Central Park, asserting that the public space did not belong to any private individual or organisation.
Brittas was also detained, along with other activists who participated in the protest.
Allegations of force against protesters and journalists
Reports from the scene alleged that police and security personnel used verbal and physical force against demonstrators carrying the national flag, dragging people into detention buses after dark. Women protesters were also reportedly among those detained.
The Wire’s special correspondent Mohammad Irfan was among the journalists allegedly heckled while covering the protest.
Hindutva supporters also reportedly gathered near the protest site, raising slogans and heckling demonstrators and journalists. The report alleged that police personnel deployed in the area did little to intervene in these incidents.
Delhi Police had deployed extensive security arrangements around Connaught Place and Jantar Mantar, including barricades, anti-riot vehicles and surveillance systems. The report put the security deployment at around 32,000 personnel.
The circumstances surrounding individual detentions and allegations of excessive force were not independently verified.
Mamata Banerjee condemns Dipke’s detention
Former West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee criticised Dipke’s detention, describing it as “nothing short of an undeclared Emergency”.
In a post on X, Banerjee said the detention of a young person for holding the national flag raised serious concerns about democratic rights and freedom of dissent. She accused the government of attempting to intimidate young people and expressed solidarity with Dipke and other activists, including Ashutosh Ranka and Saurav Das.
The CJP’s flag campaign was also intended to show solidarity with co-conveners Ranka and Das, who were reportedly sent to five-day judicial custody on charges of trespassing after unfurling the national flag at Jantar Mantar.
Banerjee’s remarks added a political dimension to the confrontation, with opposition figures questioning the police response and the handling of the protest.
High Court had declined to stop protest
The developments followed an October 15 hearing in which the Delhi High Court declined to stop the CJP’s proposed protest and instead asked Delhi Police to regulate the event.
Meanwhile, the New Delhi Municipal Council announced that Central Park would remain closed to the public on Friday and Saturday, October 17, citing administrative reasons.
The closure, heavy security deployment and detention of protesters formed the backdrop to Friday’s confrontation, as demonstrators continued to raise the national flag and demand answers about the treatment and whereabouts of detained activists.
