Delhi-NCR struggles with poor air quality. Citizens stage protests at India Gate. Delhi environment minister said the previous AAP-led govt “made the air poisonous continuously for 10 years”.
Delhities gathered at India Gate on Sunday evening. They came to protest the rising pollution in the capital city. The event occurred amid heavy police deployment. Many protesters were detained by police citing the protest illegal.
Protesters were threatened by the police with FIRs, videos on social media showed cops bundling people in police vehicles.
Protesters wearing gas masks, holding Constitution copies, and carrying children thronged the India Gate. Police detained them, which drew reactions from scores of people. These people included politicians and civil society members. Environmental activists were also among those who reacted.
As protesters took over India Gate, Delhi environment minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa spoke. He said the previous AAP-led government “made the air poisonous continuously for 10 years.” He stated they are questioning the seven-month-old CM Rekha Gupta-led government after being ousted.
“I want to tell people that, the Rekha Gupta government installed anti-smog guns on high rise buildings, has done dust mitigation with water sprinklers, we are monitoring all the ongoing constructions, we are ensuring only e-buses for public transport, also e-vehicles are being used to last-mile connectivity, but the damage of 10 years cannot be corrected in just 7 months… They are dishonest, spent the money only on ads… We are trying to improve the situation…,” Sirsa said in a video message.
Politicians, activists support the protest
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi slammed the Centre for targeting citizens protesting against rising air pollution. He asserted that the “right to clean air” is a fundamental human right. Peaceful demonstrators should not be treated as criminals.
He accused the BJP of “vote chori” and apathy toward the worsening pollution crisis. He urged immediate and decisive action to safeguard the health and future of millions of Indians.
“The right to clean air is a basic human right. The right to peaceful protest is guaranteed by our Constitution. Why are citizens who have been peacefully demanding clean air being treated like criminals? Air pollution is affecting crores of Indians, harming our children and the future of our nation,” he said.
Saurabh Bharadwaj, head of the Aam Aadmi Party’s (AAP) Delhi unit, stated that there is a trust deficit among the people. This is why well-educated and knowledgeable citizens joined the protest against poor air quality. He accused government agencies of fudging data and manipulating figures.
“When a government itself tampers with data, it creates a trust deficit. That’s why the intellectual community has taken to the streets today. That’s what is alarming. Pollution has existed for the last 10 years. What’s alarming now is that the government is manipulating the data,” he told PTI.
Children were also not spared
Many protesters were detained from India Gate, with one video from the demonstration drawing particular attention. It showed an exchange between a protester and a cop. The cop is escorting another person who is holding his child towards a police vehicle.
In the clip, the man filming can be heard questioning the officer about detaining a child, to which the cop retorts angrily:
“Bache ko protest mein leke aaoge aap?” [Will you bring kids to the protest?], says the security personnel, to which someone from the crowd responds: “bacche saans nahi lete kya [do kids don’t breathe?].
Environmental activist Vimlendu Jha shared the video on social media, alleging that children were also being detained during the protest.
Police said approximately 60-80 people were detained from the protest site. “We only detained those who were blocking the Mansingh Road. They were not allowing people and vehicles to pass,” said DCP (New Delhi) Devesh Kumar Mahla. He said the protest at Mansingh Road was being led by Delhi Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) President Saurabh Bharadwaj.
“The rest, who were inside India Gate, were directed to leave and removed,” DCP Mahla said.
Additional DCP Anand Kumar Mishra had on Saturday denied permission for the protest in front of India Gate. He cited security and traffic reasons. He asked protesters to move to Jantar Mantar.
Delhi CM refused to meet environmentalist
Environmentalist Bhavreen Kandhari also joined the protest at India Gate. She alleged that their request to meet Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta was refused.
“So many mothers and parents are deeply concerned. There’s a troubling narrative right now. Nobody is wearing masks, as you can see. There are marathons being held, schools are conducting sports days, and yet there is no advisory in place,” she said.
Kandhari added that GRAP (Graded Response Action Plan) measures have not been fully implemented. This is happening even as the Air Quality Index (AQI) touched severe and hazardous levels.
“We still have hope, and that’s why we’re here — mostly mothers, concerned parents, and citizens. There’s no hidden agenda; we’re all just parents. Many people here are holding inhalers and nebulizers, showing prescriptions. These are our emotions, our pain,” she added.
Delhiites demand for clean air
Several citizens expressed disappointment over the government’s handling of the clean air protest. The protest ended with the detention of dozens of people.
One citizen told ANI that despite people suffering, the government has not designed effective policies to address the crisis.
“The AQI is touching new heights. We are being evacuated and not allowed to protest peacefully here,” he said, accusing the government of ‘sprinkling water at data centres’ to manipulate air quality readings.
“Even cloud seeding didn’t work — that’s not a solution,” he added, demanding a permanent fix.
Another Delhi resident, identified as Neha, said that the issue of clean air has persisted for years with little action. She came to the protest with a copy of the Constitution.
“It’s a violation of our constitutional rights. We’ve been struggling with this for 10 years. No one cares about the health and rights of citizens. Peaceful protests are going on here, but people are being dragged and detained into buses,” she said, speaking to ANI news agency.
Delhi’s AQI has been between ‘poor’ and ‘very poor’ category for weeks now. On Monday, Delhi’s overall Air Quality Index slightly improved from a day earlier but remained in the ‘very poor’ level.
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