A protest against Delhi’s crippling air pollution crisis turned controversial on Sunday evening when demonstrators at India Gate openly displayed posters of Madvi Hidma, the top Maoist commander who was killed in an encounter with Andhra Pradesh Police on November 18.
The demonstration quickly escalated as protesters attempted to block traffic on the C-Hexagon around India Gate and, according to police, allegedly pepper-sprayed officers who were trying to clear the area. Delhi Police registered an FIR and launched a broader investigation into the appearance of the Maoist leader’s posters at an environmental protest.
A widely circulated video shows a small group of protesters sitting in the middle of the C-Hexagon, shouting slogans against Delhi’s toxic air. Prominently visible in the footage is a poster bearing a sketch of Madvi Hidma. Some protesters were heard chanting in praise of the slain commander: “Kitne Hidma maraoge”, “Har ghar se nikalega Hidma”, and “Amar rahe Hidma”.
When the sit-in refused to end voluntarily, security personnel moved in and asked the demonstrators to vacate the area. After the group declined, police began physically removing them one by one.
Delhi Police later clarified that protests are not permitted at India Gate and that Jantar Mantar remains the only designated protest site in the capital, in accordance with a Supreme Court order. Between 15 and 20 individuals have been detained in connection with the unauthorised demonstration and the alleged assault on police personnel.
One of the protesters, speaking to the media, defended the display of Hidma’s poster, saying, “Hidma is a tribal person who took up arms to fight for their rights. People may disagree with the method and call it wrong, but they cannot deny the reason behind it... Such repression cannot be inflicted on people who are defending their rights.”
Delhi Development Minister Kapil Mishra welcomed the police action and sharply criticised the protesters. “Look at yesterday’s protest in Delhi: posters in hand under the guise of pollution, Red Salute slogans on their lips. The new face of jihadis and Naxalites posing as social activists,” he wrote on X (formerly Twitter) on Monday, calling the police response “a befitting reply to such an ideology.”
The protest was organised by the Delhi Coordination Committee for Clean Air, which accused the Rekha Gupta-led Delhi government of resorting only to “cosmetic measures” such as water sprinkling and cloud seeding instead of tackling the root causes of the capital’s alarming pollution levels, which have deteriorated sharply over the past week.
In a statement, the group declared, “When the state makes the air itself poisonous, it becomes necessary for people to unite and raise their voices for their own survival.” It described the toxic air as a “serious risk” to public health and blamed the prevailing development model—mining projects, large-scale forest clearances, and rapid infrastructure expansion in ecologically fragile zones—for driving pollution, displacing communities, and intensifying extreme weather events across the country.
The organisers further alleged that whenever citizens raise these issues, the government responds with “suppression” through detentions, restrictions, and attempts to silence dissent.
Also Read: Delhi schools ban outdoor activities amid worsening air pollution
This was the second protest against Delhi’s air pollution crisis at India Gate this month. On November 8, activists joined by Opposition leaders from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) and Congress had marched to the same location, demanding effective policy measures as the Air Quality Index (AQI) in several parts of the city crossed the 400 mark, falling into the “severe” category.
On Monday, Delhi’s overall AQI stood at 397—teetering on the edge of the severe category once again. Of the city’s 39 monitoring stations, 20 recorded air quality in the severe range.
Neighbouring Noida fared even worse, with an AQI of 413, firmly in the severe category.
Also Read: Delhi air 'very poor' at AQI 397; protesters use chilli spray
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