CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke questioned why Das and Ranka remained in custody. The party alleged procedural obstruction and warned of further legal action.
BY PC Bureau
NEW DELHI/ October 18 The release of Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) co-convenors Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka was delayed on Saturday despite the expiry of their five-day judicial custody, with the party alleging deliberate obstruction by authorities at Mandir Marg police station.
CJP legal affairs head Ratna Singh said she had been waiting at the police station since morning for a hearing scheduled for noon. According to her account, the paperwork, verification and other requirements had been completed, but the proceedings dragged on for hours.
In a detailed account of the proceedings, Singh alleged that the Special Executive Magistrate (SEM) was at the police station by 1.30 pm but did not enter the courtroom until around 5 pm.
“We have been here since morning. We were told that the entire hearing would take place at 12.00 pm. Today, everything was complete, the verification was done, and all requirements were met. We have been waiting here since noon,” Singh said.
The CJP legal affairs head alleged that when the SEM finally entered the courtroom, he refused to hear the case on its merits—specifically, whether Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka should be released from judicial custody.
“When he finally arrived, he refused to hear our case on its merits regarding whether Saurav and Ashutosh should be released from judicial custody. Instead, he made arbitrary remarks,” she said.
Singh further alleged that the public prosecutor, who had not appeared at the police station for the preceding four days, was present on Saturday. Within minutes of the proceedings beginning, the SEM reportedly told the court that he had received a threatening message.
“Within about five minutes of the proceedings, the SEM told the court that he had received a threatening message. From that point on, the entire discussion revolved solely around that message,” Singh alleged.
CJP legal affairs head claimed that the focus on the alleged threat diverted attention from the question of whether the requirements for the two co-convenors’ release had been fulfilled.
“It is clear that this entire episode was orchestrated,” Singh said, alleging that the proceedings had been structured to focus on the threatening message rather than the release application.
“Given how this process has been deliberately delayed and handled, I am utterly disappointed,” she added.
The allegations could not be independently verified. Delhi Police subsequently registered an FIR against unknown persons over the reported threat to the magistrate.
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The state is deliberately prolonging Ashu and Saurav’s illegal arrest by using every dirty trick in the book to delay court proceedings and prevent their release.
They have no legal grounds to keep them behind bars, so they are resorting to delaying tactics to keep them there.
— Abhijeet Dipke (@abhijeet_dipke) October 18, 2026
Four sureties rejected
Singh also alleged that four sureties had been rejected on grounds the party considered vague and arbitrary.
“They have rejected four sureties till now on vague reasons. They have made people who have FIRs against them for being part of protest as people having criminal antecedents,” she said.
“Unfurling the Indian National Flag is not a crime, and the boys should not remain in custody due to procedural delays,” she added.
CJP maintained that it had completed the required paperwork and was waiting for formal approval. The party questioned why the release proceedings had not been concluded despite the expiry of the five-day judicial remand.
CJP Founder Abhijeet Dipke questions continued detention
CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke, who was released earlier on Saturday on conditional bail, expressed solidarity with the two co-convenors.
“I am waiting for my brothers to be free,” Dipke said, sharing a photograph of Das and Ranka. He questioned why the two remained in custody after their judicial remand had expired, particularly when, according to CJP, the police had not sought an extension.
CJP said it had consulted senior advocate Kapil Sibal and warned that it would pursue legal remedies over what it described as deliberate delaying tactics.
Arrests followed Jantar Mantar protest
Das and Ranka were arrested on Tuesday after protesters climbed a locked gate to enter Jantar Mantar, which had been de-notified as a designated protest site. The protesters unfurled the national Tricolour and raised slogans. CJP national organisation in-charge Ajinkya Shinde and 11 others were released, while Das and Ranka were placed in preventive custody and remanded to five days of judicial custody.
The arrests came amid protests by CJP, student groups and Opposition parties against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar and the Election Commission’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise. AISA national president Neha Bora was also detained on Friday and released after overnight detention under Section 65 of the Delhi Police Act.
The key issue remains why the release proceedings were not completed on Saturday despite CJP’s assertion that all formalities had been fulfilled. The precise legal basis for the continued detention, the reasons for rejecting the sureties and the magistrate’s account of the proceedings would need to be established from official records.
For CJP, the day’s events amounted to an unjustified delay in the release of two protest organisers. The party said it would continue pursuing legal remedies to secure their release.
