A tale of two protests: Before the CJP, dismissed BSF personnel were denied permission to agitate Jantar Mantar
Former BSF personnel protested outside the JLN metro station in central Delhi. | Photo credit: Special arrangement
While the Delhi Police denied permission to the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) to hold its protest on October 10 at Jantar Mantar, saying the request was made at short notice, there is another group of protesters — more than 400 ex-Border Security Force (BSF) personnel — who were also denied police permission for their own protest despite having applied for it about a month earlier, on September 9.
The ex-BSF personnel eventually staged a demonstration against their dismissal from service on Friday (October 9, 2026) on the pavement outside the BSF headquarters in central Delhi. They sought permission for a “two-day hunger strike/protest” at Jantar Mantar, but the police said the hunger strike was illegal and that the two-day continuous agitation was not allowed due to existing Supreme Court guidelines.
Since the protest demanding Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation as Union Education Minister ended on July 26, the Delhi Police has not allowed any demonstrations at Jantar Mantar, the designated site for the protests.
Many of the 400 ex-BSF personnel who came from different parts of the country were given appointment letters under the Prime Minister’s Rozgar Mela scheme but were dismissed after about two years of service. The group, including cooks, water carriers and women BSF recruits, gathered under the banner of the Alliance of All Ex-Paramilitary Welfare Associations and staged a protest near the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium metro station in the state capital, demanding reinstatement after being dismissed over allegedly forged qualification documents. However, the fired employees said they were victims of cyber fraud, not willful misconduct.
Cyber fraud
According to the association, the candidates enrolled in online training and submitted certificates which were later declared fake by the BSF, leading to their dismissal after one-and-a-half to two years of service.
The association cited responses obtained under the Right to Information (RTI) Act in which it alleged that the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) did not issue relevant certificates between 2015 and 2023. It further claims that the NSDC Level-1 course for cooks and water carriers was not available on the SIDH portal during this period.
The association claimed that a Koderma, Jharkhand-based cyber fraudster operating under the name ‘Defence 93’ had allegedly issued fake certificates from multiple addresses and that police complaints had been lodged in the matter.
Protesters also alleged inconsistency in handling similar cases. According to the association, one recruit was retained in service after being given an opportunity to correct deficiencies in its documentation, while another recruit was reportedly allowed to continue in service after intervention by the Assam government.
The association said it submitted documents related to these cases to the BSF authorities and sought a review of what it termed differential treatment. He also urged the force to investigate correspondence allegedly written in support of one of the recruits.
Financial burden
Representatives of the laid-off personnel said many of those who were decommissioned had served for nearly two years and had received awards from their units for their performance. They alleged that several recruits had also taken bank loans of ₹5-7 crore during their service and are now struggling to repay after their discharge.
The association said the job loss has put hundreds of families in financial distress and appealed to the BSF and the Union government to consider restoring jobs on humanitarian grounds.
The association requested that the dismissed BSF tradesmen be given a time-bound opportunity to submit new and valid certificates and be reinstated.
In a statement, the association’s general secretary Ranbir Singh reiterated the demand for re-employment of more than 400 employees. A delegation led by former BSF Additional Director General HR Singh also approached the BSF headquarters and urged the Director General to work with the sacked employees and listen to their grievances.
Published – 9 Oct 2026 22:58 IST