Police tell media to keep distance from anti-Gyanesh Kumar protesters

New Delhi: Delhi Police has asked journalists to maintain their distance from protesters at Jantar Mantar, amid allegations of police brutality against media personnel covering demonstrations demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

Additional DCP Manjeet Sheoran urged journalists to cover demonstrations from a distance, alleging that some individuals posed as journalists one day and participated in protests the next, creating difficulties for the police. He also accused some media personnel of entering protest crowds and obstructing police operations. Delhi Police subsequently shared the advisory on X.

The directive comes amid allegations that police have adopted repressive measures to prevent people from joining the anti-CEC demonstrations. Complaints include protesters being forced off trains, people being detained from their homes and taken to undisclosed locations, and mosques allegedly being asked to discourage participation in the protests.

AISF leader Neha Bora criticised the police response, questioning whether such actions were consistent with their duty to protect citizens. She accused the force of functioning like a political instrument of the BJP and warned that democratic rights were under attack.

Meanwhile, police are processing complaints filed by three women journalists who alleged that they were subjected to police brutality while covering a protest at Jantar Mantar on October 3. The demonstration was part of the campaign demanding Kumar’s resignation. The New Delhi district police transferred the journalists’ complaint to the Crime Branch at Kamla Market.

According to DCP Neha Yadav, the journalists approached the police around 6 pm. Their complaint reportedly included an allegation of attempted sexual assault during detention. Police said they had registered the complaint, completed medical examinations and referred the matter to the Crime Branch for further investigation.

The National Human Rights Commission has also taken suo motu cognisance of the incident based on media reports and sought a report from the Delhi Police Commissioner within two weeks. The commission observed that the allegations, if established, would amount to a serious human rights violation.