New Delhi: The judicial custody of Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka was extended by two days on Monday evening, October 19, after Delhi Police sought further custody, citing concerns over public order. The development came amid allegations by the party that proceedings had been deliberately delayed and that the authorities were attempting to prevent the leaders’ release.
The Delhi Special Executive Magistrate court extended the custody of Das and Ranka by two days. According to reports, the court cited concerns over public order and alleged violations of the peace bonds signed by the two leaders after they called for a protest at Jantar Mantar, which had been removed from the list of designated protest venues.
The court also rejected the sureties submitted by the defence, citing discrepancies in photographs accompanying the documents.
CJP’s Head of Legal Affairs, Ratna Singh, criticised the decision, alleging that the proceedings had been repeatedly delayed over surety verification and other procedural issues. She said the party would challenge the order in court, arguing that there were insufficient legal grounds to continue the leaders’ detention.
Defence lawyer Abhik Chimni said Delhi Police had sought an additional five to seven days of custody, citing a potential threat to public order and tranquillity. He questioned the need for further detention, arguing that the matter concerned preventive custody rather than an investigation requiring custodial interrogation.
In a separate development, the case against Das and Ranka over their alleged unauthorised entry into Jantar Mantar was transferred to the Delhi Police Crime Branch for further investigation, according to police sources.
The two leaders were detained on October 13 after allegedly scaling a locked gate to enter the protest site, where CJP members unfurled the national flag and raised slogans demanding Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation.
The custody extension drew criticism from CJP activists. Actor Prakash Raj described the decision as a 'mockery of justice', while YouTuber Dhruv Rathee called for the immediate release of the two leaders.
CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke also expressed solidarity with Das and Ranka, praising their resolve and reiterating the party’s commitment to its campaign. NCP(SP) spokesperson Anish Gawande criticised the continued detention, questioning why the leaders remained in custody beyond their initial five-day remand.
The developments come amid continuing protests by CJP, opposition parties and student organisations demanding Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
The Election Commission has denied allegations of political bias and maintained that voters whose names were wrongly deleted can re-enrol. The dispute over the revision exercise and the restrictions on demonstrations at Jantar Mantar remain central to the escalating confrontation between the protest groups and the authorities.