New Delhi: Popular YouTuber Dhruv Rathee said he was kidnapped from his bedroom on Saturday ahead of the public protest at Jantar Mantar in Delhi.
"I was literally kidnapped," Dhruv Rathee said in a video message shortly after being released from a 24-hour detention. Rathee has claimed he was injured by 'goons' who barged into his house early in the morning and refused to even let him wear his chappals.
Rathee said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has made this country a dictatorship and we have an unofficial emergency in India. "Such things happen in North Korea. Now it is happening in our country," he said.
I was not arrested or detained, I was KIDNAPPED. Thank you for your support, here's the full story 👇 https://t.co/gcN8cAUOmY
"They kept me kidnapped for 22-23 hours. They neither let me access the phone nor let me talk to the lawyer about anything.
"I would like to ask you a question. Have you heard of any democratic country where a common citizen who has not broken any law, who has only raised his voice for the truth, for the welfare of the country, who has demanded a better election commission, is kidnapped from his home, his parents are beaten up, and he is dragged away.."Rathee began his video message by showing an Indian passport, which he claimed was his, refuting rumours that he was a foreigner.
"This is my passport. I am an Indian citizen. I was and will always be one. The rumours that are being spread by the Godi media are giving justification for my detention and arrest that I was a foreign passport holder. I did not participate in the protests. It is a complete lie."I am an Indian citizen, and I have the same rights as a common citizen," Rathee said.
In a separate post, Rathee dismissed claims that he had been released from police custody after giving an undertaking that he would not participate in any further protests.
The rumours followed a post by Rahul Shivshankar, who claimed that Gurugram Police released the YouTuber from custody on Saturday night after he gave such an undertaking. Shivshankar also claimed that police could take Rathee into custody again if he attempted to go to Jantar Mantar.
Reacting to the post, Rathee termed it “fake news” and said he had not given any such undertaking.
@RShivshankar Fake News, I have not given any such undertaking.
In a separate post, Rathee dismissed claims that he had been released from police custody after giving an undertaking that he would not participate in any further protests.
The rumours followed a post by Rahul Shivshankar, who claimed that Gurugram Police released the YouTuber from custody on Saturday night after he gave such an undertaking. Shivshankar also claimed that police could take Rathee into custody again if he attempted to go to Jantar Mantar.
Reacting to the post, Rathee termed it “fake news” and said he had not given any such undertaking.
Rathee was detained from his residence in Gurugram's Sector 56 on Saturday as police stepped up security across the national capital to prevent protesters from reaching Jantar Mantar for a demonstration demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities related to the SIR.
The detention came amid an unprecedented security clampdown in Delhi, where more than 7,000 protesters were detained at multiple locations, police sources said.
Several opposition leaders, including former chief ministers Arvind Kejriwal, Mamata Banerjee, Pinarayi Vijayan and Manik Sarkar, were also detained while attempting to join the protest.
CJP leaders Abhijeet Dipke, Ashutosh Ranka and Saurav Das have been placed under preventive arrest after their detention from the airport.
Police are likely to register multiple FIRs in connection with the alleged assaults on personnel during the protest, a senior officer said.