The Delhi Police have denotified Jantar Mantar as a designated site for protests and named three alternative venues — Ramlila Maidan, Burari Ground and CBD Ground —for such demonstrations even as the spot has remained inaccessible to both the opposition INDIA bloc and the Cockroach Janta Party over the past several days.While Ramlila Ground in Central District is 4 km away from Jantar Mantar, the CBD Ground in East District is 12 to 13 km and Burari Ground in North District is nearly 21 km away.In an order issued on October 11, Delhi Police Commissioner Anurag Kumar said, “The Ministry of Home Affairs had constituted a committee to examine alternative sites where citizens could exercise their right to organise protests and demonstrations, replacing the existing designated site. Based on the committee’s recommendations, Jantar Mantar has been de-notified while three new venues have been designated.”The Delhi Police said a detailed and revised standard operating procedure (SOP) for organising demonstrations at the three designated venues would be issued separately.Incidentally, protesting at Ramlila Maidan could prove to be a distant as well as costly affair as the site has no free dates available for the next two and a half months and even then, the booking amount could soar to upwards of Rs 1 lakh.Officials in the know said the 12-acre ground, which can accommodate 50,000 people, could now be booked only for December 29, 30 and 31 this year. “The booking rate for the ground is Rs 50,000 per day, plus a Rs 55,000 security deposit that is refundable. The initial outlay, including taxes, comes to Rs 1.21 lakh for a day’s booking,” an official said.Civic officials clarified that a small portion of the ground was free for protests and gatherings, but it had a capacity of only 150 people.Jantar Mantar has served as a prominent protest venue in the national capital since 1993 when demonstrations at the Boat Club area near India Gate were restricted following a massive farmers’ protest led by Mahendra Singh Tikait in 1988.In October 2017, the National Green Tribunal ordered a ban on protests at Jantar Mantar and directed that demonstrations be shifted to Ramlila Maidan. The Supreme Court set aside the blanket prohibition in July 2018, allowing peaceful protests subject to regulation.Ramlila Maidan, one of Delhi’s historically significant venues for political mobilisation, has hosted landmark rallies, including Jayaprakash Narayan’s 1975 agitation against the Indira Gandhi government and Anna Hazare’s anti-corruption movement in 2011.In December 2012, the site and its surroundings became an important location for demonstrations following the brutal Nirbhaya gang-rape.