New Delhi, Oct. 18 -- Leaders of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) on Sunday accused authorities of "deliberately prolonging" the release of party members Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, who have been in judicial custody since October 14 after allegedly scaling the locked gates of Jantar Mantar, which had been denotified as a designated protest site.

The Delhi Police denied allegations of deliberately delaying their release, saying the prescribed procedure was being followed and that the surety bonds submitted by the party were faulty. Further, police added that a first information report (FIR) had been registered on Sunday after the special executive magistrate (SEM) hearing the case reported receiving threats.

The SEM at Mandir Marg has ...