Stage Dismantled: Protesters' Makeshift Platform Pulled Down After Parliament March

On a humid Delhi afternoon, a crowd of protestors gathered outside the Parliament building, waving placards and chanting slogans. The group, identified as members of the CJP, had erected a modest wooden stage the previous evening to address the gathering after the march.

Just after sunset, municipal workers arrived with ladders, saws and a sense of urgency. Within an hour, the makeshift platform was reduced to a pile of timber and a few scattered speakers. Witnesses say the removal was swift, almost as if the stage had never existed.

“We spent the whole day building this to speak our truth,” one protester, who asked to remain anonymous, told reporters. “Now they’re pulling it down, like they want to silence us. It’s a blatant message.”

In response, the demonstrators launched into a rallying chant that quickly turned into a bizarre metaphor: “Cockroaches, stay put!” The phrase, repeated several times, was meant to convey that even the most marginalized voices would not retreat, even when faced with bureaucratic push‑back.

Police officials, on their part, claim the stage was removed because it violated local regulations concerning public assemblies and posed a safety hazard. “We are not targeting any particular group,” a spokesperson said. “Our priority is public order.”

Legal experts point out that Delhi’s protest laws require prior permission for structures larger than a certain size. However, activist groups argue that such rules are often weaponised against dissent.

Meanwhile, the atmosphere around the Parliament remains charged. The march that preceded the dismantling attracted hundreds, many of them holding up banners that read “Democracy Now” and “Our Streets, Our Voice”. The removal of the stage only added fuel to the already simmering tensions.

As night fell, a few protestors remained on the sidewalk, their voices echoing off the marble façade. “We’ll find another way,” one said, gesturing toward the empty space where the stage once stood. “The cockroaches will stay, and so will we.”