Law
Right to protest explained: What Articles 19(1)(a) and 19(1)(b) say
The Delhi High Court agreed on October 8 to hear on Friday the Indian Youth Congress’s plea against Delhi Police’s refusal to allow a protest at Jantar Mantar against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
Article 19(1)(a) protects freedom of speech and expression.
Article 19(1)(b) protects the right to assemble peacefully and without arms.
Article 14 guarantees equality before the law.
The Youth Congress cites all three in its plea against Delhi Police.
The Delhi High Court will hear it on Friday.
The court said the plea would be listed within 24 hours, and that counsel can mention it again the next day if it is not listed.
The hearing is expected on Friday, October 9, 2026.
The petitioner is the Indian Youth Congress, through its national president Uday Bhanu Chib.
The plea was filed by advocate Roopesh Singh Bhadauria.
The Indian Youth Congress applied to Delhi Police on September 25 for a peaceful gathering of about 100 to 150 people.
It said it would accept lawful conditions on security, traffic management, discipline and public order.
Delhi Police communicated its rejection on October 1, the very day the demonstration was scheduled, according to Bar and Bench.
The plea argues that the refusal came too late despite repeated follow-ups with the police.
It argues that the police cannot turn a power to regulate a peaceful assembly into a power to prohibit it without an individualised and proportionate assessment.
It challenges what it calls a mechanical application of protest guidelines.
The plea invokes Articles 14, 19(1)(a) and 19(1)(b) of the Constitution, which cover equality, freedom of speech and the right to assemble peacefully.
The plea also relies on Supreme Court rulings that recognise the right to peaceful assembly.
Separately, a petitioner has asked the Supreme Court to examine the appointments of the Chief Election Commissioner and Election Commissioners Sukhbir Singh Sandhu and Vivek Joshi, according to India Legal.
The reports available on October 8 did not include a response from Delhi Police to the plea.
On October 6, INDIA bloc MPs marched towards the Election Commission demanding the Chief Election Commissioner’s resignation.
Jantar Mantar, New Delhi (file image), Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0