Ahead of protests planned in the national capital on Saturday, the Ministry of Railways has cancelled all mail and express trains reaching Delhi tomorrow, citing fears of congestion, it announced on Friday.
The cancellations will cover trains departing their source stations after 2 pm on Friday and scheduled to reach New Delhi or Hazrat Nizamuddin stations between 4 am and 2 pm on Saturday, according to a communication sent by the Railway Board’s principal executive director of coaching to all zonal railways on Friday.
It said the action had been taken in view of anticipated severe road traffic congestion in areas around the two stations on Saturday. An official said the Railways had taken a proactive, precautionary step to ensure passengers did not face hardship.
Meanwhile, Delhi Police has also asked the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) to close 57 stations, including those serving major office clusters in central Delhi, from 9 pm on Friday.
A DMRC executive said the corporation had received the letter but that nothing had been finalised by the transporter as of Friday afternoon.
Political parties and pressure groups such as the Cockroach Janata Party have called for a protest at central Delhi’s Jantar Mantar, seeking the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
Previously, the DMRC had also closed several stations in central Delhi and adjoining areas during protests calling for the resignation of then Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
