Final night at Jantar Mantar: Volunteers pack up after 36-day CJP sit-in

Hours after the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) formally called off its 36-day agitation following Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation, quiet settled over Jantar Mantar as municipal workers and police teams moved in to clear the site. By 1:00 am on Sunday, the central Delhi protest venue—where thousands of students had gathered daily—was emptied of barricades, temporary sound stages, and makeshift sleeping mats.

Around a hundred volunteers and out-of-station supporters spent their final night sleeping along the Tolstoy Road footpaths and the Kerala House stretch before boarding late-night trains home.

What we can verify

1. Site clearance at 1 am
   Senior Delhi Police officers and New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) sanitation staff arrived at the protest venue late Saturday night, requesting remaining demonstrators to vacate so heavy machinery could clear accumulated waste. Sanitation teams subsequently removed over 50 tonnes of garbage from the area.

2. Volunteers linger after stage removal
   Ground reports confirm dozens of volunteers stayed back past midnight to clean up, distribute sweets, and light candles near the stone pillars where student memorials had stood during the sit-in.

3. Out-of-state supporters begin return journeys
   Demonstrators who had travelled from West Bengal, Bihar, and Chhattisgarh gathered along neighboring pavements with packed bags to check morning train schedules, with several groups departing from New Delhi and Old Delhi railway stations on Sunday.

4. Public transport restored
   Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) reopened all previously restricted metro station gates surrounding Jantar Mantar and Patel Chowk on Sunday morning as security cordons were relaxed.

What remains unverified

• Exact timeline for Delhi Police to formally nullify or withdraw all pending FIRs filed during the 36-day movement.
• Final official count of overall turnout during the closing hours of the Jantar Mantar sit-in on Saturday.

Cover image: Jantar Mantar protest site as volunteers and sanitation workers cleared the area. Source: The Indian Express