Annamalai defends CJP protest rights, questions police conduct

Former BJP leader K. Annamalai defended the Cockroach Janta Party’s right to protest and called on the Centre to answer questions about Delhi Police’s handling of its members, while saying he disagreed with some of the group’s tactics. In an October 21 post on X, Annamalai questioned the detention of CJP members and the procedures used in their bail proceedings. He said raising concerns about due process should not lead to critics being branded as foreign agents, and urged the government to respond rather than dismiss questions as political attacks. Annamalai asked how Jantar Mantar came to be denotified as a protest site after CJP sought permission to hold a demonstration. He also questioned police officers’ authority when serving as Special Executive Magistrates in preventive proceedings involving people detained by Delhi Police, arguing that the arrangement raised concerns about impartiality. Referring to a hearing on October 19 for people arrested at Jantar Mantar on October 13, Annamalai alleged that the magistrate arrived late and recused himself, citing a threat to his life. He also sought an explanation for the rejection of eight sureties and the questioning of a...