MUMBAI: Dramatic scenes unfolded at Shivaji Park on Tuesday as a group of people confronted members of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) and forced them to leave the area, objecting to the outfit’s proposed protest on October 2 against the Election Commission and chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.The confrontation came amid the CJP’s plans to hold a protest at Shivaji Park on October 2 over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and alleged irregularities in the exercise.The group, led by Abhijeet Dipke, has been demanding Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation.Visuals that emerged from the incident showed several people engaged in a heated exchange with a group of CJP members, asking them to leave the area immediately.Pranav Ahire, a CJP member who was present at the spot, said the outfit was unsure whether the people who confronted them were local residents or had been “planted” there by someone.“We are not sure if they are regular residents of Shivaji Park or if they have been planted there by somebody. In the run-up to the October 2 protest, we were just speaking to some media persons at Shivaji Park. Our national team will address the issue soon,” Ahire said.The BJP Mumbai unit, in a post on X, said, “We stand firmly with the local residents.”The post further said, “A true Marathi Mumbaikar will never support an agitation inspired by anti-national forces.”
BJP Mumbai’s tweet
Confrontation comes two days after Mumbai Police denied permission for the CJP’s October 2 protest at Shivaji Park.According to the police communication, the department was not empowered to grant permission for a public gathering at the ground under existing Bombay High Court orders and subsequent state government guidelines.Police also cited the absence of mandatory permission from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation for use of the ground.Authorities also pointed to Shivaji Park’s status as a designated silence zone surrounded by residential areas and raised concerns over noise pollution.They also said the proposed gathering could cause severe traffic congestion and obstruct the movement of emergency vehicles to hospitals in the vicinity.Police advised the organisers to consider an alternative venue in Mumbai, saying any fresh application for another location would be considered according to the applicable rules.After the denial, CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke announced a “Jail Bharo Andolan” in Mumbai on October 2, saying the group would proceed with its agitation.
