Jantar Mantar, Ramlila Maidan and the changing protest map of Delhi
Over the past 23 years, Jantar Mantar has witnessed several protests—some fizzled out while others left a lasting imprint on India’s political landscape
Delhi's political protest map has undergone a significant transformation with the de-notification of Jantar Mantar as a designated demonstration site by the Delhi Police. For over two decades, the stretch beside the astronomical observatory served as the epicenter for iconic political movements, civil rights agitations, and nationwide protests such as the India Against Corruption campaign and the 2012 Nirbhaya demonstrations. As security concerns and administrative restrictions continue to reshape public dissent in the capital, traditional protest hubs are giving way to newly designated locations like Ramlila Maidan.
Delhi's political protest map has undergone a significant transformation with the de-notification of Jantar Mantar as a designated demonstration site by the Delhi Police. For over two decades, the stretch beside the astronomical observatory served as the epicenter for iconic political movements, civil rights agitations, and nationwide protests such as the India Against Corruption campaign and the 2012 Nirbhaya demonstrations. As security concerns and administrative restrictions continue to reshape public dissent in the capital, traditional protest hubs are giving way to newly designated locations like Ramlila Maidan.
Delhi's political protest map has undergone a significant transformation with the de-notification of Jantar Mantar as a designated demonstration site by the Delhi Police. For over two decades, the stretch beside the astronomical observatory served as the epicenter for iconic political movements, civil rights agitations, and nationwide protests such as the India Against Corruption campaign and the 2012 Nirbhaya demonstrations. As security concerns and administrative restrictions continue to reshape public dissent in the capital, traditional protest hubs are giving way to newly designated locations like Ramlila Maidan.
Delhi’s protest map has shifted over the past few days. A call by the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) to protest on Saturday, demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, met with a crackdown even before it began, with heavy police deployment, transport restrictions and detentions. Meanwhile, the Congress-led ‘Dilli Chalo’ march, on Monday, brought together senior INDIA bloc leaders in a show of strength. The change, however, isn’t restricted to who takes to the street but also where.
On Monday, Jantar Mantar, which had become synonymous with political dissent in the national capital, was de-notified as a designated protest site by the Delhi Police.
It was notified as one in 2003. And over the past 23 years, this stretch beside the 18th-century astronomical observatory has witnessed several protests, some that fizzled out and others that left a lasting imprint on India’s political landscape.
Among the most consequential was the India Against Corruption movement, launched by anti-corruption activist Anna Hazare at Jantar Mantar on April 5, 2011. As the protest swelled beyond the stipulated limit of 5,000 participants, it moved to Ramlila Maidan. The movement drew several prominent figures from civil society, including Arvind Kejriwal, Kiran Bedi, Prashant Bhushan, Medha Patkar, Harsh Mander and Ram Jethmalani. It also laid the groundwork for the formation of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which went on to challenge the Congress and the BJP and reshape Delhi's political landscape.
Then, in December 2012, the gangrape of a 23-year-old physiotherapy student, known to the nation as Nirbhaya, on a moving bus in Delhi sent shockwaves across the country. As people took to the streets demanding justice, Jantar Mantar emerged as one of the sites of protest.
Jantar Mantar once again became a site of political dissent during the anti-CAA protests in December 2019. In January 2023, it was the venue for another demonstration as wrestlers, including Sakshi Malik, Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Punia, began a sit-in protest against Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, then president of the Wrestling Federation of India, over allegations of sexual harassment of women wrestlers.
Most recently, Jantar Mantar drew thousands of protesters when the CJP launched a demonstration over the NEET paper leak controversy. The agitation eventually led to the resignation of BJP MP Dharmendra Pradhan as Union education minister.
Interestingly, long before Jantar Mantar, the Boat Club near India Gate was the preferred venue for protests in Delhi. That, too, became restricted in the wake of a massive farmers’ agitation in 1988, led by Bharatiya Kisan Union (BKU) leader Mahendra Singh Tikait. The government cited security concerns, and the protests eventually shifted to Ramlila Maidan.
Ramlila Maidan, meanwhile, one of the three newly notified protest sites, has witnessed several major demonstrations, at least two of which had far-reaching consequences for national politics and the Congress party.
It was here, on June 25, 1975, that socialist leader Jayaprakash Narayan addressed a massive rally against then PM Indira Gandhi. That same day, Gandhi declared the Emergency. Two years later, the Congress suffered its first electoral defeat at the Centre in the 1977 Lok Sabha elections.
And in 2011, after beginning at Jantar Mantar, the India Against Corruption movement shifted to Ramlila Maidan. The protest dealt a blow to the Congress both at the Centre and in Delhi.