The Delhi Police announced on Sunday that the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) would not be permitted to conduct its planned march to the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) headquarters.
The AAP had organized the demonstration outside the BJP office to protest against the arrest of several AAP leaders by central agencies. Delhi Chief Minister and AAP national convenor Arvind Kejriwal is currently out on bail until June 1 in the excise policy case, while his personal assistant Bibhav Kumar was arrested on Saturday for the alleged May 13 assault on Swati Maliwal, the party’s Rajya Sabha member.
1. Police officials stated that no permission had been sought for the protest, and as a result, the AAP’s march would not be permitted. Section 144, which prohibits the gathering of more than four people at a place, is in effect on the DDU Marg and the ITO area, where the two parties have their offices.
2. There was a heavy presence of security forces at the headquarters of the BJP, the country’s ruling party since 2014. Barricades were set up outside the facility.
3. Security forces were also deployed outside the office of the Aam Aadmi Party, which has been governing Delhi since December 2013 and has strained relations with the BJP-led Centre.
4. Delhi Traffic Police issued an advisory ahead of the demonstration. “Traffic will remain heavy at DDU Marg, IP Marg, Minto Road, and Vikas Marg. DDU Marg may be closed for traffic movement between 11 am to 2 pm. Kindly avoid these roads and plan your journey accordingly,” it said in a post on X (previously Twitter).
5. The Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) announced that entry/exit gates at the ITO station would remain closed “until further notice.”