New Delhi: The legal team representing Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka is expected to approach the Delhi High Court on Wednesday, October 21, seeking a hearing on their plea challenging the extension of their judicial custody. The High Court did not hear their plea on Tuesday night.
The two leaders had sought an urgent night hearing against a Special Executive Magistrate’s decision to extend their judicial custody by two days. They were initially remanded to five days of judicial custody after being detained on October 13.
According to the CJP, Das and Ranka were detained after allegedly climbing over a locked gate to enter Jantar Mantar, which had been denotified as a designated protest site. The party has sought their release, arguing that their liberty should not be curtailed over the protest.
In their petition, the leaders argued that the magistrate wrongly extended their custody despite their sureties having been produced in accordance with the law. They also contended that the order relied on the police application without independently assessing whether continued detention was necessary. The petitioners maintained that a protest at a denotified site was a matter of regulation rather than a threat to public order.
YouTuber Dhruv Rathee criticised the continued detention of Das and Ranka, writing, 'Murderers get bail, nationalists in jail!'
Rathee also drew a comparison between an Allahabad High Court ruling and the proceedings concerning the CJP leaders in Delhi.
Murderers Get Bail, Nationalists in Jail! https://t.co/YXr5x3qwms
Amid the legal developments, CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke thanked Naveen Patnaik, Mamata Banerjee and Arvind Kejriwal for expressing support for Das and Ranka.
Dipke also responded to online trolls, saying the detained leaders were 'not just better leaders than me but also better people'. He clarified that he was not throwing them under the bus but took pride in having better people by his side.
Saurav and Ashu are not just better leaders than me but also better people. When I say this, I am not throwing them under the bus but rather taking pride in the fact that I have better people by my side. https://t.co/j6UXSvgoH9
Actor Prakash Raj criticised the BJP and RSS, urging them to stop shifting attention from peaceful protests and address the ‘vote chori’ allegations raised by citizens.
In a post on X, Raj wrote, “Fraand and your gang ..stop trying to change the narrative of peaceful protests and address the issue of Vote Chori .. allegations the Citizens of this Country are asking.”
He also accused his opponents of resorting to violence while protesters were attempting to demonstrate peacefully.
Fraand and your gang ..stop trying to change the narrative of peaceful protests and address the issue of Vote Chori .. allegations the Citizens of this Country are asking . #justasking https://t.co/7dcpsYSpPK
Former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray, addressing a rally at Mumbai’s Shivaji Park, said protesting was a right of the youth. He alleged that ‘vote chori’ affected everyone, particularly first-time voters, and said his party was working towards regime change.
The developments come amid continuing political debate over the detention of the CJP leaders and allegations concerning electoral processes.