Live: Opposition marches against poll panel in Delhi as Jantar Mantar protest ban triggers Supreme Court battles

Supreme Court on Tuesday (October 13, 2026) to hear pleas challenging the closure of several metro stations in Delhi amid the protest against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the functioning of the Election Commission of India (ECI). -- PTI

Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan on Monday said dictators often subvert electoral systems to cling to power before dismantling civil rights. This trend is evident in India under the BJP leadership, he said. He was inaugurating the 'Save Democracy' gathering organised by the Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) at Gandhi Park to protest against arrests linked to the Delhi agitations, demand the protection of democratic rights and seek the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. Chief Minister V.D. Satheesan on Monday said dictators often subvert electoral systems to cling to power before dismantling civil rights. This trend is evident in India under the BJP leadership, he said.

Protesters who tried to march to the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO), Karnataka's office in Bengaluru on Monday, to condemn the Delhi Police's treatment of demonstrators protesting against the Special Intensive Revision (SIR), faced similar heavy-handedness from the Bengaluru City Police, with at least 100 people detained, and students, lawyers, and women protesters allegedly manhandled. Police crackdown in Bengaluru detains 100 protesters demanding SCRAP of SIR, resignations, and electoral reforms, with journalists targeted.

Is the Election Commission of India (ECI) at sixes and sevens, idiomatically and otherwise? Will Form 6 be its undoing, and has Form 7 caused it unmanageable discomfiture? The barbs associated with these forms have further damaged the image of the beleaguered constitutional body entrusted with safeguarding the constitutional right to vote of "we, the people". The Election Commission of India's actions raise new and far more serious questions about its impartiality and transparency

Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke on Monday (October 12, 2026) accused the Delhi Police of mentally torturing him and his family after informing him of his grandmother's death during his preventive detention last week. He alleged that the police did not allow him to speak to his cousin about his grandmother's death and instead asked him to call his grieving parents. He also called Prime Minister Narendra Modi a "coward dictator". CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke accuses Delhi Police of mental torture amid detention, condemns Modi's denial of Jantar Mantar as a protest site.

The Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, on Monday (October 12, 2026) compared the repeated protests by the Opposition against alleged "vote chori " (theft) to Lord Shiva's tandav (cosmic dance), while claiming that Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar had sent him messages. "This is tandav , Lord Shiva's dance. There is no planning here," Mr. Gandhi said in response to a question on the Opposition's future strategy on the issue, adding, "There is no need for a plan. A dance is going on, Lord Shiva's dance. And anyone can join Shivji ki baraat (the wedding procession of Lord Shiva)." Rahul Gandhi equates Opposition protests to Lord Shiva's tandav, calls for CEC's ouster while alleging 200 Modi-era officers feed information.

Exactly three days before the Delhi Police de-notified central Delhi 's Jantar Mantar as a designated protest site on Monday (October 12, 2026), the Supreme Court and the Union government were on the same page about finding an alternative site to "peacefully and lawfully" express dissent in the national capital. On October 9, both the court and the government had reasoned that central Delhi was too cramped for protests. It denied protesters basic amenities. Observations and remarks were also exchanged about how inconvenient protests in and around Jantar Mantar were to ordinary commuters in Delhi. The Chief Justice of India remarked that central Delhi did not have any washroom, medical and drinking water facilities. Supreme Court and government urge a spacious, open protest site in Delhi as Jantar Mantar is de-notified, prioritizing amenities and commuter convenience.

Opposition parties and youth groups strongly condemned the Centre's decision on Monday (October 12, 2026) to de-notify Jantar Mantar as a designated protest site in New Delhi. This comes as youth organisations have been trying to seek permission to hold a protest at Jantar Mantar demanding rollback of the special intensive revision (SIR) and Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar's resignation. CJP opposes denotifying Jantar Mantar as protest site, condemns the move and cites rights, amid Delhi police designating alternative locations.

Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi has invited INDIA bloc MPs, civil society members and student organisations for a high tea at his residence on Tuesday (October 13, 2026), sources said. They said a joint press conference of INDIA leaders would also take place in the afternoon followed by tea at Gandhi's 5, Sunehri Bagh Road residence. "Following today's March for Democracy and the submission of the petition ... a joint press conference of INDIA leaders will be held tomorrow afternoon, followed by tea. 'I invite you to join me at my residence at 5, Sunehri Bagh Road, New Delhi, at 4:00 PM on Tuesday, 13th October'," the invite read. This comes a day after the raging protests over the vote theft charge reached the Supreme Court's doorstep. Opposition stalwarts, joined by activists and civil society members, undertook a "March for Democracy" on a heavily barricaded route and filed a joint petition against SIR and alleged poll irregularities in a major show of strength in the national capital. -- PTI

The Supreme Court on Monday (October 12, 2026) clarified that it had neither approved nor disapproved the controversial alterations made to Form 6 in its May 27 judgment, which was entirely about the legality of the pilot Special Intensive Revision (SIR) process in Bihar. The Court said the May 27 ruling pre-dated the changes made to Form 6. Supreme Court clarifies it neither approved nor disapproved Form 6 alterations tied to Bihar SIR, noting changes post-date May 27 judgment.

The Delhi Police detained more than 5,000 protesters as they tried to reach Jantar Mantar for the protest demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and a rollback of the SIR. In the lead up to the protests in Delhi, there was a nationwide crackdown on protesters by the police force. Among those detained and brutally manhandled by the Delhi police were leaders of various political factions, former Chief Ministers, the Leader of the Opposition, lawyers, journalists, students, activists, and reportedly people who were not even part of the protest. Police detained people at representatives' residences even before the protest started, and en route to the protest site. However, the Supreme Court on Sunday (October 11, 2026) directed the Centre and the Delhi Police to ensure free movement of people 'subject to law and order'. Supreme Court orders in Delhi protest detention review; explains preventive detention, BNSS 163, and constitutional safeguards.

The DMK on Monday (October 12, 2026) said it had no reason to participate in protests organised by the Congress after the latter "betrayed" it for the sake of power, forcing the DMK to leave the INDIA bloc. "We left the INDIA bloc after the Congress betrayed the DMK for the sake of power. There is no need for us to participate in the Congress's protests, and the party cannot compel us to join them," a statement from the DMK headquarters said on Monday (October 12). DMK states it left the INDIA bloc and won't join Congress protests, accusing Tagore of hypocrisy and defending its anti-BJP stance.

The Delhi Police on Monday (October 12, 2026) de-notified Jantar Mantar as a designated venue for protests and demonstrations, replacing one of the capital's longest-established sites of public dissent with three alternative grounds farther from the seat of power. The move drew criticism from activists, who said relocating demonstrations would make it harder for citizens to draw the attention of political leaders and decision-makers to their demands. Jantar Mantar no longer legal protest site; three alternative sites designated by Delhi Police Delhi Police de-notifies Jantar Mantar as protest site; designates Ramlila Ground, Burari Ground, and CBD Ground, East Delhi, with new SOP forthcoming.

The scene was a stark departure from the preceding two days, when student protesters attempting to mobilise in the same parts of the Capital were rounded up, bundled into police buses and taken away . Several alleged that they had been assaulted during detention, while journalists covering the protests also reported being detained. Thousands protest in Delhi supporting INDIA bloc calls to rollback SIR and resignation of CEC, amid police detentions and heavy security.