Ratna Singh, in an update early on Wednesday, said Das, Ranka and Shinde will likely be produced before a special executive magistrate (SEM) before 7 am.
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The Cockroach Janta Party has claimed that its co-convenors Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka have been arrested, following the Jantar Mantar breach on Tuesday morning.
However, the Delhi Police said they were placing the CJP leaders, including Ajinkya Shinde, “under preventive arrest”, ANI news agency reported. CJP legal affairs head Ratna Singh, in an update early on Wednesday, said Das, Ranka and Shinde will likely be produced before a special executive magistrate (SEM) at Mandir Marg Police Station before 7 am.
The Delhi Police had, on Tuesday evening, filed an FIR against Das, Ranka and Shinde for allegedly trespassing into the Jantar Mantar area without authorisation, PTI news agency cited officials as saying.
What has the CJP said?
While the cops say the leaders are under preventive arrest, CJP's Ratna Singh, in a post on X, said the Delhi Police had arrested Das, Ranka and Shinde in the breach case. “Trespass, bond violation, obstruction of public official’s duty, etc,” Singh said about the charges on them.
She had also claimed that there was a possibility of “judicial custody in Tihar Jail” after the CJP leaders were presented before the SCM court. “They were not allowed to meet their lawyers till late at night. They were brought to Parliament Street PS at 3 AM in a private van,” Singh claimed. She later also posted a photograph of the three from Parliament Street Police Station. “Despite these illegal actions, their spirits are high,” Singh added.
In the update post, Singh said, “FYI, 24 hours timeline will end soon.”
Why were the CJP leaders detained?
Das, Ranka and Shinde along with other CJP volunteers had entered Jantar Mantar by jumping the locked gates on Tuesday, a day after the site lost its designated protest venue status.
Ranka shared a video of the incident on his X handle, showing Das and him, along with outfit's national organisation in-charge Ajinkya Shinde, climbing the locked gates and entering the venue before police personnel present there intervened and took hold of them. Ranka also displayed the Tricolour at the venue, before Delhi Police detained the CJP leaders.
Saurav Das shared a video on his Instagram handle shortly after detention and said, “We have breached Jantar Mantar.” Ashutosh Ranka said in the video that the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar will happen from Jantar Mantar only, "no matter what".
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