Delhi High Court Turns Down Urgent Hearing for Karni Sena’s Protest Plea

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday said no – it would not entertain an emergency hearing on the Karni Sena’s plea to stage a protest at Jantar Mantar on September 20. A two‑judge bench, headed by Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya with Justice Tejas Karia, directed the group to file its application like any other case and wait for it to be listed in due course.

Raj Shekhawat, the president of the Kshatriya Karni Sena, had approached the court after the Delhi Police turned down an earlier request to hold a rally on September 6. The police cited the ongoing preparations for the BRICS Summit‑2026 at nearby Bharat Mandapam, heightened security concerns and traffic management issues.

In response, the Sena argued that their proposed demonstration – scheduled from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on September 20 – would be completely separate from the summit activities. They offered to obey any reasonable conditions, even promising not to march from Jantar Mantar towards the summit venue or any other security‑sensitive route.

Earlier, on September 7, Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma had asked the police to reconsider the petition for the new date and to give a decision by September 14. The protest is aimed at voicing opposition to the government’s reservation policies and the newly‑issued UGC (Promotion of Equity in Higher Education Institutions) Regulations, 2026, which the Sena wants scrapped.

While the court’s recent order does not grant the protest permission, it also does not outright reject it. It merely says the matter will be dealt with through the regular procedural channel, leaving the final call to the competent police authority after a full hearing.

As of now, the Karni Sena must wait for its case to be scheduled, and the police will have another opportunity to assess the security implications of the proposed rally.