Noida: Nearly 300 people were put under preventive detention ahead of a protest against the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) at Jantar Mantar in Delhi on Saturday, even as police intensified checks near Chilla border and UP Gate. Additional personnel were posted at all district borders adjoining Delhi, and several vehicles believed to be heading for the protest were turned back after their occupants were questioned.Police also continued preventive action against leaders and activists suspected of planning to attend. More than two dozen people were detained at their homes on Saturday, while around 300 people, among them members of several political parties and farmers’ groups, were detained at their homes on Friday.“With prohibitory orders under BNSS Section 163 in force in Noida, we intensified checking at border points and deployed additional personnel at key locations. Security was stepped up at important malls and crowded public places to maintain law and order and prevent any untoward incident. No one was arrested or held,” additional commissioner of police (law and order) Rajeev Narayan Mishra said. Police also monitored social media posts and warned against circulating old videos and misleading content that could trigger rumours or disturb public order.At Chilla, DND and Kalindi Kunj borders, police and paramilitary personnel checked vehicles heading for Delhi throughout the day. Three companies of the Provincial Armed Constabulary (PAC) were deployed in Noida, while water tankers and a fire brigade vehicle stood by to deal with any law-and-order situation.The arrangements were in place from 9 pm on Friday, with surveillance stepped up from early Saturday to prevent protesters from travelling to Delhi in groups. Young commuters were asked where they were going and where they came from, while cabbies were also quizzed about their destinations. Rahul, who was travelling by cab from Noida to Connaught Place, was stopped by police. When asked why he was heading to Delhi despite the restrictions, he said, “My office is open. If I don’t report to work, I will lose my day’s pay.”Ankush and his friends, walking with backpacks slung over their shoulders, were also stopped and asked about their whereabouts. “I play kabaddi, and we are regular students. We don’t know what these checks are for, but they seem quite extensive,” he told TOI.Police said the checks had begun around 8 am, and vehicles carrying farm union flags or protest stickers were stopped for questioning. Personnel searched bonnets, interiors and luggage compartments to identify suspected participants.At Chilla border, barricades were erected and vehicles were channelled through two lanes for checks until around 11 am. At DND, Delhi Police personnel with cameras mounted on their shoulders screened vehicles heading towards the national capital. Drones were also used to monitor areas around the borders, and CCTV feeds were tracked through the police control and command centre.Traffic was not stopped entirely, as police sought to spare commuters travelling to Delhi for work and other essential purposes. Checks were eased after CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke, along with other members, Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, was detained from an Air India flight as soon as they landed in Delhi on Saturday morning.In Ghaziabad, police also stepped up security and preventive surveillance, watching suspected participants and monitoring movement towards the capital to stop groups travelling to the protest. The coordinated checks across the two districts aimed to maintain law and order while letting routine traffic continue wherever possible.Earlier in the day, Samajwadi Party functionaries and farmers’ leaders from Kisan Ekta Sangh, BKU and Kisan Sabha staged a demonstration at Jaypee Greens Narmada Gate in Greater Noida. They shouted slogans against the chief election commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar and police, then handed a memorandum addressed to President to the sub-divisional magistrate (SDM), seeking impeachment proceedings against Kumar. They also opposed the alleged detention of farmer leaders, social activists and political activists, calling it a “violation of democratic and constitutional rights”.Kisan Sabha district president Rupesh Verma alleged that democracy was facing a three-pronged attack. He said allegations of vote theft had raised serious questions about the electoral process, while detaining people who raised election-related concerns was an attempt to suppress dissent. He said police action infringed citizens’ rights to freedom of expression and peaceful protest. “Dissent must be respected in a democracy,” he said.Tension prevailed near Narmada Gate around 11 am as police and protesters scuffled during the submission of the memorandum. The protest caused a traffic jam in the area, following which a heavy police force remained at the spot.Former bar association president Jagatpal Bhati, Budhpal Yadav, Shishant Bhati, Gurpreet, Rahul Nagar, Nishant Rawal, Bhojraj Rawal, Sushil Sunpura, Sudhir Rawal and Naresh Nagar were among the farmer leaders and activists who attended along with hundreds of others.Former bar association president Jagatpal Bhati, Budhpal Yadav, Shishant Bhati, Gurpreet, Rahul Nagar, Nishant Rawal, Bhojraj Rawal, Sushil Sunpura, Sudhir Rawal and Naresh Nagar were among the farmer leaders and activists who attended along with hundreds of others.
