Delhi: Organisers of protest against air pollution allege police pressured them to call off stir

The organisers of a protest against air pollution in Delhi on Sunday alleged that they were repeatedly pressured by police officials to cancel the demonstration.

The protest took place at the Mansingh Road near India Gate on Sunday evening, on a day when the national capital recorded an air quality index in the “very poor” category at 370.

One of the organisers, who asked not to be named, told Scroll that the police threatened to file first information reports against those behind the agitation. “…But despite nearly 100 calls over the past three days – from DCP (deputy commissioner of police] to SHOs [station house officers] – the organisers decided to go ahead with the protest,” he said.

The organiser said the fact that India Gate has for several years been cordoned off and closed to peaceful demonstrations was reason enough for Delhi’s citizens to gather there and protest against a public health emergency.

Another organiser told Scroll that she received several calls from the police, pressuring her to cancel the protest. She said officers repeatedly asked her to post on social media and on instant messaging group chats, telling people not to show up.

Scroll tried to contact Manoj Kumar Singh, the station house officer of the Kartavya Path police station, to seek a...

Read more