Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka have been remanded to five days of judicial custody following their detention during a protest at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi. Another party leader, Ajinkya Shinde, has been released on a personal bond.
The three leaders were detained after allegedly crossing police barricades, entering Jantar Mantar and raising slogans demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. They were produced before a magistrate at Mandir Marg in Delhi at around 8 am on Wednesday.
CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke announced that Das and Ranka had been sent to judicial custody, criticising the police action and accusing the government of suppressing dissent.
According to reports, the two leaders allegedly violated prohibitory orders issued under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) and breached the conditions of bonds they had previously furnished. They were reportedly treated as repeat offenders, resulting in their remand to judicial custody.
The three leaders face charges, including trespassing, violation of bond conditions and obstructing a public servant from discharging official duties.
In a post on X, CJP legal team head Ratna Singh said Shinde, Das and Ranka had been arrested in connection with the Jantar Mantar protest. She also alleged that the leaders were denied access to their lawyers until late at night and were taken to Parliament Street Police Station in a private van at around 3 am.
Das and Ranka had previously been released after furnishing bonds of Rs 50,000 each and undertaking not to engage in any breach-of-peace incident for one year following an earlier protest in Delhi.
Singh later confirmed Shinde’s release on a personal bond.
The detentions come amid heightened security in the national capital as the CJP and other groups protest against alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
On October 11, Delhi Police Commissioner Anurag Kumar issued an order designating Ramlila Maidan, Burari Ground and CBD Ground as venues for protests and demonstrations, removing Jantar Mantar from the list of approved protest sites.
The CJP has opposed the decision, arguing that moving demonstrations away from central Delhi would reduce the visibility and impact of public protests.