Fact Check: Delhi Police Allowed to Invoke NSA Amid CJP Protests?

Reports circulating on social media and reported by some media outlets suggested that the Delhi Police had been granted special powers under the National Security Act (NSA), 1980 to crack down on the ongoing Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) protests. However, the Delhi Police has dismissed these reports as misleading, clarifying that the order is a routine administrative renewal and is not linked to the CJP protests.

Routine Renewal, Not a Fresh Crackdown

According to the Delhi Police, the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi authorised the Commissioner of Police to exercise powers as a detaining authority under the NSA for three months, from July 19 to October 18, 2026.

The authorisation enables the Police Commissioner to issue preventive detention orders under the provisions of the NSA during this period. Unless withdrawn or modified earlier, the order will remain valid until October 18, 2026.

Delhi Police clarified that the NSA authorisation is renewed every three months as part of a routine administrative process. The current renewal was issued on July 7, 2026, well before the recent escalation of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) protests.

“It has been reported by several media houses that, in order to quell the CJP protests, the Commissioner of Police, Delhi, has been granted powers of detention under the National Security Act (NSA),” Delhi Police said in a statement.

The police further clarified that no special request was made in the context of the ongoing protests and that the notification has been taken out of context by some media reports.