Jantar Mantar Protest: CJP Founder Abhijeet Dipke Detained After Flight From Mumbai Lands in Delhi
CJP demanded unconditional release; police cited late permission application.
Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke was detained by Delhi Police after his flight from Mumbai landed in the national capital on Saturday, ahead of the organisation’s planned protest at Jantar Mantar. A video recorded inside the Air India aircraft showed women police personnel detaining the 30-year-old and other CJP leaders, including Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka. The demonstration was called to demand the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over allegations of irregularities in the preparation of electoral rolls.
In the video, Dipke is heard telling the police, “I have come here to be arrested. Arrest me. I am not afraid of you.” A police officer responded that the action was not an arrest and asked him to cooperate. Dipke then requested permission to carry his bag. According to sources, the three CJP leaders were subsequently taken to different locations. Dipke was taken to a detention centre in Gurugram, while Das and Ranka were moved to separate locations in Delhi.
The CJP condemned the detentions, describing them as a violation of freedom of movement and demanding the immediate and unconditional release of the three leaders. The youth-led organisation has called for a demonstration against Kumar over alleged voter-list manipulation during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and changes relating to Form 6, which is used for voter registration. The party previously organised a protest at Jantar Mantar over the alleged leak of the national medical entrance examination, an agitation that was followed by the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan in July.
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YouTuber Dhruv Rathee was also detained ahead of the demonstration. The 32-year-old, who travelled from Germany to join the CJP leaders, was detained at his residence in Sector 56 of Gurugram, according to the report. Sources said around 50 Delhi Police personnel had arrived at his home for the operation. Rathee has more than 33 million YouTube subscribers, 19 million Instagram followers and 3.3 million followers on X. His detention added to the actions taken against individuals planning to participate in the protest.
CJP legal cell head Ratna Singh also released a video alleging that police personnel had restricted her movement ahead of the demonstration. She said officers visited her residence in the morning and asked her not to leave. According to Singh, police personnel later surrounded her car as she sat inside it, although she was eventually allowed to leave. She alleged that the officers did not provide a reason for the detention. The report did not include a police response specifically addressing her claims.
More than 400 people had reportedly been detained overnight ahead of the protest, while hundreds of train services were cancelled and dozens of metro stations closed. The Centre deployed more than 20,000 police and Central Armed Police Forces personnel to maintain law and order. Police denied permission for the demonstration, citing the late submission of the application and alleged rule violations during an earlier protest. According to the police, the application was received on October 7, only three days before the planned event, whereas applications are required to be submitted at least 10 days in advance.
