Chandigarh, Nov. 22 -- City Beautiful, which is often pegged as the senior citizens' paradise, painting a picture of a serene, peaceful city, has seen 1, 828 protests in the last two years, official data shows. This means, Chandigarh witnesses an average of two to three protests every day, disrupting routine life for its residents. What's more worrying is the fact that despite the city having a designated protest site - the rally ground in Sector 25 - most of the demonstrations take place away from this site, pointing to a lack of enforcement. A detailed analysis of official data shows that the city's unique administrative character plays a significant role in the high frequency of demonstrations. As the shared capital of two states, the city hosts a vast concentration of government offices and directorates for both Punjab and Haryana, in addition to the UT administration departments. This means, employee unions from both states, as well as the UT's own employees, and staff from institutions such as the Post Graduate Institute Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), simultaneously protest in Chandigarh, often marching towards the residences of the two CMs. A senior official stated that although the Sector 25 ground has been officially designated as the city's protest site, very few demonstrations actually take place there, likely due to the adjoining cremation ground. A change of protest site can be expected in the future, the official added. Protests that follow procedure and obtain permission - as was seen in 2024 when thousands of farmers had converged on Chandigarh for a state-level dharna in Sector 34 for five days with prior nod from the administration - rarely lead to confrontation or disruption. On the contrary, during the Qaumi Insaaf agitation in January 2025, when protesters forcefully tried to enter Chandigarh via the Mohali border, a violent confrontation with the police was seen, forcing cops to resort to tear gas and lathicharge. In the melee, three police personnel were injured and several police vehicles were damaged. As a result, three FIRs were registered, naming eight identified members and 70-80 unknown protesters, under charges of rioting, assault, carrying sharp weapons and blocking public roads. Police records show that criminal cases were registered only in cases where demonstrations were held without mandatory permission, blocked major public roads, disrupted essential services, or led to injuries to police personnel during confrontations. In 2024, FIRs were registered in six instances and in 2025, eight cases were registered. Despite a drop in total protests in 2025 compared to 2024 (see box), the number of FIR-linked protests rose. Officials say this show, the city saw more confrontational protests, especially from groups attempting to march without permissions or ignoring traffic restrictions, in 2025. A senior official noted that the constant inflow of state-level and UT-level agitations means police must deploy large force detachments daily, sometimes for multiple simultaneous gatherings. "Our priority is always to maintain order with minimal disruption, but when crowds turn unruly, we are forced to deploy additional forces to ensure public safety," said Kanwardeep Kaur, UT senior superintendent of police (SSP)....