- Delhi Police intensifying accommodation checks before CJP protest.
- Special units tracked protest leaders, monitored group movements.
- Individuals travelling to Delhi faced questioning, detentions elsewhere.
Delhi Police have intensified checks at hotels, guest houses, hostels and other accommodation facilities across the national capital ahead of the Cockroach Janta Party’s (CJP) proposed protest on October 10, questioning some guests about their travel plans and reasons for visiting the city.
According to a report by Hindustan Times, at least four police officials confirmed that personnel had been directed to inspect temporary accommodation establishments and verify the details of people staying there. A guest and two hotel employees also told HT that police officers had visited their premises and asked about the purpose and duration of their stay.
According to one officer, police teams are checking registers and records maintained by hotel owners and managers before assessing occupants against a set of specified criteria. People considered suspicious based on these factors are being questioned, individuals familiar with the exercise said, the report said.
What Is Drawing Police Scrutiny?
The duration of a guest’s stay, the size and composition of travelling groups, and the stated purpose of visiting Delhi are among the factors being examined, officials said. Stays between October 8 and 11 are receiving particular attention, especially when people have arrived in groups and plan to leave shortly after the weekend.
An officer said guests who checked in a day or two before the protest and intended to leave soon afterwards were being asked about their reasons for visiting Delhi, as they could potentially be travelling to attend the demonstration, HT reported.
The officials declined to specify what action, if any, would be taken against people identified as having come to Delhi to participate in the protest.
According to the report, police teams have also been assigned to inspect hotels, bed-and-breakfast establishments and paying guest accommodation. One officer said a list of four- and five-star hotels had been provided to personnel, taking into account the “social profile” of some protest leaders.
A senior police officer said particular attention was being paid to rooms booked by someone other than the person occupying them. Personnel have been instructed to compare the identification documents submitted by guests with hotel booking records.
“To my knowledge, staff have been asked to focus on individuals staying in rooms booked by others on their behalf. For that reason, they are not only checking hotel registers but also matching IDs submitted by the guests. If there is any mismatch, the personnel may question the hotel staff, the guests or the persons who booked the rooms,” HT quoted the officer as saying.
Special Cell, Crime Branch Tracking Organisers
While local police teams are focusing on people suspected of travelling to Delhi for the protest, specialised units, including the Special Cell and Crime Branch, have been tasked with tracking key figures associated with the CJP, left-wing organisations and civil society groups, another officer said.
“Locating the place of stay of social media influencer Dhruv Rathee and CJP’s founder Abhijeet Dipke is the prime responsibility of the Special Cell and Crime Branch teams,” the officer said.
Police are also monitoring bus operators and examining bookings to determine who is hiring vehicles and where they are headed. Officers have been directed to look for organised movement towards Delhi, particularly New Delhi, in the run-up to the October 10 demonstration.
“They have been asked to keep a watch on bus operators, including bookings being made and the destination. If there is organised movement of people towards New Delhi, the local police should be aware of it and stop it,” an officer said.
Checks are also being conducted near railway stations and the airport to identify large groups arriving in the Capital.
One officer said the exercise was intended to verify information received from other state police departments and railway police about groups of men travelling to Delhi.
“We are not stopping or detaining anyone. We are just making inquiries. There’s intel that suspicious persons are coming to Delhi and will join the protest to violate law and order. We have got information from state police departments and railway police about groups of men coming in from different cities to Delhi. We are just verifying their details,” the officer said.
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Questioning And Detentions Outside Delhi
The report stated that police questioning and detentions occurred in other parts of the country, involving people travelling towards Delhi, particularly young people and protesters moving in groups.
An All India Youth Federation member from Mumbai alleged that Delhi Police contacted him while he was travelling to the Capital. According to him, the officer accused him of travelling in a large group to attend the protest and called him a terrorist after he questioned the police action, HT reported.
The man said he subsequently got off the train at Faridabad and returned home.
In Madhya Pradesh, railway police detained 21 people travelling towards Delhi on the Goa Express in connection with the planned demonstrations, according to Government Railway Police (GRP) officials.
GRP Itarsi town inspector Sanjay Chauksey said police had received information that a large number of youths who could disrupt public order were travelling from Pune to Delhi. Following checks aboard the train, the group was detained and taken to a hotel in Itarsi, he said.
Chauksey added that the youths were being asked to return to Pune. The detained individuals were seen at the railway station shouting that they were travelling to Delhi to protect their rights and the Constitution.
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