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Union Home Minister Amit Shah will visit the Delhi Police headquarters on Saturday and meet senior police officials to discuss the law and order situation in the national capital, sources said.
The visit comes amid protests by opposition parties and student organisations against the Election Commission of India (ECI) over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. Opposition parties have alleged irregularities in the exercise and demanded the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. On Friday, several Left parties and student leaders staged a march near Bangla Sahib Gurudwara, demanding Kumar's removal and opposing the SIR exercise. In view of the anticipated movement of a large number of people from Bangla Sahib Gurudwara towards Jantar Mantar, the Delhi Traffic Police issued an advisory announcing diversions between 1 pm and 5 pm. Commuters were advised to avoid affected roads, plan their journeys and follow traffic police instructions. The protests have also extended to university campuses, with the hunger strike by five Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) students entering its 13th day on Saturday. The students are demanding the restoration of the Jamia Millia Islamia Students' Union (JMISU) and the removal of the university's Chief Proctor over what they described as a crackdown on protesters. Jasim Ali Khan, who has been on hunger strike since the protest began, accused the university administration of launching a crackdown and demanded the revocation of students' suspensions. Meanwhile, Congress MP Jebi Mather said on Saturday that the Congress, along with INDIA bloc partners, would hold a rally at Ramlila Maidan on November 1, demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over the SIR exercise. Congress general secretary K C Venugopal had announced the rally on October 5, saying it would demonstrate opposition unity against what the party has termed "Vote Chori" and mobilise people from across the country in defence of democracy. However, the proposed rally has also drawn concerns from Delhi's trading community. The Chamber of Trade and Industry (CTI) on Saturday wrote to Congress leader and Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, urging him to postpone the November 1 rally until after November 10, citing the impact on businesses during the festive season. CTI Chairman Brijesh Goyal requested that the rally be rescheduled to a date after Bhai Dooj, which falls on November 10 this year. The traders' body highlighted that Dhanteras, Diwali and Bhai Dooj are among the busiest periods for Delhi's retail markets, with festive purchases and sales beginning well in advance. Earlier in the day, All India Students' Association (AISA) national president Neha Bora criticised the use of peace bonds against protesters, arguing that they were being "weaponised" to curb democratic dissent. Bora said AISA, the student wing of CPI(ML) Liberation, would not participate in what she described as the "normalising" of peace bonds, asserting that signing them was "no less than" surrendering the democratic right to dissent. (ANI)
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