Delhi Police Clear Jantar Mantar Protest Site After 37-Day Agitation Ends
After 37 days of demonstrations, the student-led protest at Delhi's Jantar Mantar concluded late Saturday night when police cleared the site around midnight. The movement, spearheaded by the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP), was officially called off on July 25 following the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan amid the NEET-UG paper leak controversy. The government accepted the protesters' demands, prompting the organisers to announce the withdrawal of the agitation.
However, many students remained at the venue to celebrate the success of their movement. Until midnight, the protest site was filled with slogans, Tricolour flags, posters, music, and students singing and dancing around the stage. At midnight, Delhi Police personnel arrived with shields and batons, systematically clearing students from various entry points.
Several students and journalists present stated they were unaware that the area would be cleared at that hour. Police first moved towards Janpath Metro Station, Gate No. 2, where a large number of protesters were gathered. According to a report by NDTV, many students had planned to stay overnight.
"All of this happened suddenly. Initially, a crowd of protesters ran out of this gate, seemingly under a lathi charge. But that wasn't the case. Delhi Police personnel arrived in large numbers and began clearing out people from both sides of the road," the report said.
Police used loudspeakers to inform students that the protest had ended and asked them to return home. They also announced that metro services would remain available until 12:30 am to facilitate their departure. Within 10–12 minutes, one side of Jantar Mantar was cleared. Some protesters continued raising slogans outside the barricades and briefly stopped traffic near a signal. Police later cleared the area and directed students towards Connaught Place.
The evacuation was carried out in phases. After clearing the Janpath side, police moved towards the main protest stage area, where students had gathered for over a month. By around 1 am, the stage area was empty. Municipal workers arrived soon after and began cleaning the roads and removing garbage. Police teams, along with municipal workers, also cleared the surrounding Connaught Place area. Personnel carrying shields and batons were deployed on both sides of the roads as students were escorted away.
Despite the dispersal, students continued raising slogans as they left the area. By 1 am, the 37-day student protest at Jantar Mantar had officially come to an end.
