CJP Leaders Detained Ahead of Delhi Protest

Cockroach Janta Party founder Abhijeet Dipke and two party leaders were detained aboard their plane after it landed in Delhi on October 10, as police moved to prevent the group’s unauthorised protest demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. The party identified the other leaders as Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka. The CJP said the three were taken from the aircraft before they could proceed to Jantar Mantar. Video released by the party showed an officer telling Dipke that he was not under arrest and asking him to cooperate. The available accounts do not establish the formal legal basis for the detentions or how long the men were held. Police also detained people trying to reach the planned demonstration. A police source put the number held in the Delhi area at about 200; another police account put the figure at around 500 among groups arriving from different locations. The CJP separately claimed that at least 10,000 supporters had been detained nationwide, an allegation for which the supplied accounts included no police response.