New Delhi, Oct. 13 -- Delhi Police detained Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) members Saurav Das and co-convenor Ashutosh Ranka on Tuesday after they allegedly jumped over a gate to enter the Jantar Mantar protest site.
A report said Das reached the spot with a few associates. Some CJP members, including Ranka, allegedly entered the site through the JD(U) office premises near Jantar Mantar and jumped over a gate to reach one side of the protest venue. They were detained by the police. An FIR may be filed in the case. Ranka shared a video on social media platform X, which showed participants raising slogans of "Bharat Mata Ki Jai" and demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
The latest arrests come days after CJP members Abhijeet Dipke, Das and Ranka were arrested on Saturday on the eve of the party's demonstration for Kumar's resignation. The three were allegedly detained while travelling by air to Delhi for the protest. The CJP had announced a demonstration on Saturday for demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Kumar. The fresh developments also come as Delhi Police de-notified Jantar Mantar as an authorised protest venue and replaced it with Ramlila Ground, Burari Ground and CBD Ground in East Delhi citing security concerns. The move has triggered a legal battle with the Delhi High Court set to hear a petition challenging the de-notification of the Jantar Mantar as a protest venue on Tuesday. The court also agreed to hear a petition seeking directions against the alleged intrusion of outsiders inside the protest venue and harassment of protesters. The police action and the change in protest venue has sparked off a high-voltage battle royal on the CJP protests in the capital.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.