IYC moves Delhi HC against police refusal for protest against CEC

Indian Youth Congress (IYC) national president Uday Bhanu Chib has approached the Delhi High Court challenging the Delhi Police’s refusal to grant permission for a proposed peaceful protest against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar at Jantar Mantar.

The petition challenges the Delhi Police order dated October 1, 2026, by which permission for the proposed demonstration was rejected. According to the plea, the IYC had applied on September 25 seeking permission to hold a peaceful protest involving around 100-150 people against CEC Gyanesh Kumar. The organisation said it had undertaken to comply with all lawful conditions relating to security, traffic management, discipline and maintenance of public order.

Plea Cites Constitutional Rights

The plea states that despite repeated follow-ups, the police communicated the rejection only on October 1, which was also the first proposed date of the demonstration. Chib has contended that the police’s power to regulate peaceful assemblies cannot be treated as a power to completely prohibit them without an individualised and proportionate assessment of the circumstances.

The petition invokes Articles 14, 19(1)(a) and 19(1)(b) of the Constitution and challenges the alleged mechanical application of guidelines governing protests and assemblies. It relies on Supreme Court jurisprudence concerning the right to freedom of speech and expression and peaceful assembly, and argues that any restrictions on such rights must be lawful and proportionate.

The petition has been filed through advocate Roopesh Singh Bhadauria, National Chairman of the IYC Legal Department, and is likely to be heard by the Delhi High Court next week. (ANI)

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