Delhi Police compiles ‘database’ of potential protesters, makes phone calls and visits homes ahead of Oct 10 Jantar Mantar protest

Security personnel stand guard at Jantar Mantar Road amid heavy security deployment ahead of a proposed Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) protest October 9, 2026 | Photo credit: PTI

The Delhi Police has compiled a “database” of people likely to take part in the October 10 protest at Jantar Mantar and is coordinating with law enforcement agencies across states to prevent them from reaching the capital, sources said. As a precautionary measure, police in several states detained potential participants, questioned supporters about their plans and visited their homes before the proposed demonstration.

The effort to intercept protesters at their starting points reflects the Delhi Police’s district strategy to prevent people from reaching central Delhi. With the protest called by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) and student organisations, the police are tracking potential participants through social media activity, intelligence inputs and coordination with state agencies, sources said.

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The Union Home Ministry also ordered states and union territories to implement precautionary measures in coordination with the Delhi Police, citing intelligence that CJP supporters intended to defy the bans and enter Delhi from different parts of the country.

The ministry said earlier protests involving participants traveling from multiple states had led to significant disruption of public order and damage to public property.

It also called for continuous real-time intelligence sharing between state intelligence agencies, traffic authorities and the Delhi Police, calling the maintenance of law and order a “non-negotiable constitutional imperative”.

Surveillance extends to online networks used to mobilize protest participants. The Hindu had earlier reported that the Delhi Police had identified at least 200 WhatsApp and Instagram groups being used to mobilize people from different parts of the country. Police are monitoring the groups and tracking users who are discussing plans to participate in the demonstration, the sources said.

Delhi Police’s cyber unit is also monitoring the social media activity of people expected to join the protest, while keeping an eye on key organizers, including the CJP’s core team and their associates.

People traveling in groups, students and young people, those who participated in earlier public movements and social media users actively discussing the protests are among those under scrutiny.

Across the country, supporters, members of organizing bodies and students claimed that they were contacted by police personnel to ask if they intended to travel to Delhi on 10 October. Some also claimed that the police visited their homes to discourage them from participating in the demonstration.

“One of the people who received a call from the Delhi Police Special Branch said that a police officer asked if they were planning to go to Jantar Mantar on Saturday,” user X said.

Independent journalists and content creators also claimed that the police had called them asking if they intended to cover up the protest and prevent them from traveling to Delhi.

The move comes as Delhi Police denied permission for the October 10 protest at Jantar Mantar, citing violations of conditions imposed during an earlier demonstration and concerns over law and order and traffic management.

Published – 09 Oct 2026 21:18 IST