The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) will pay a visit to Parliament Street Police Station in Delhi on Friday to seek action against Swatantra Bhardwaj. The self proclaimed Hindutva ‘influencer’ claimed to have assaulted Sanjay Kumar, father of student protester Nishu, during a protest at Jantar Mantar in June.
CJP spokesperson Saurav Das said he, along with other party members, would reach the police station at 10 am to seek justice for Sanjay. Das made the announcement on X on Thursday.
CJP co-convener Ashutosh Ranka asked people to join Saurav Das in demanding action against Bhardwaj. On X, Ranka wrote, “Every true patriot should join Saurav.. It’s us vs communal, bigoted hate-mongers.”
What is the case?
The case relates to an alleged assault on Sanjay Kumar, father of CJP activist Nishu Azad, during a protest at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar. Sanjay Kumar was involved in a scuffle during a protest. CJP has alleged that he was attacked by Swatantra Bhardwaj and others.
{{/usCountry}}The case relates to an alleged assault on Sanjay Kumar, father of CJP activist Nishu Azad, during a protest at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar. Sanjay Kumar was involved in a scuffle during a protest. CJP has alleged that he was attacked by Swatantra Bhardwaj and others.
{{/usCountry}}A video of Bhardwaj, a self-styled Hindutva influencer, in which he claimed to have “broken the skull” of Kumar during the protest and escaped jail despite the assault. He also claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was like his “elder brother” and said that political connections helped him avoid jail.
“I cracked the skull of Nishu's father. Do you know which section this crime attracts? Section 307. He needed 60 stitches. The man was being taken away in an ambulance in a serious condition.”
He further said: “But I was not even jailed. The world should know this. I was out and about through the night.”
Bhardwaj also claimed that Delhi BJP minister Kapil Mishra, Union minister Chirag Paswan and PM Modi were like his “elder brothers” and that he had their support.
Delhi Police disputes skull injury claim
Delhi Police has rejected claims that Kumar suffered a fractured or “cracked” skull and said the claim was “misinformation” and “completely baseless”.
On X, DCP New Delhi said the incident took place on June 23 during the CJP protest. According to police, Kumar, 38, a resident of Ghaziabad, sustained a head injury from a kada, or metal bangle, worn by one of the alleged participants during a scuffle.
Police said Kumar was medically examined at RML Hospital and that his injuries were classified as “simple in nature”. It also said the injury was caused by the kada and not a weapon.
A case was registered at Parliament Street Police Station on Kumar’s complaint. Police said two men, Suraj Kumar, 24, and Swatantra Bhardwaj, 21, were detained from the protest site and later served notices and interrogated.
“Due legal action has been taken, and chargesheet would be filed before the competent court soon,” the police said, while denying allegations of political interference in the case.
What CJP said
Saurav Das has accused Delhi Police of failing to take stringent action against Swatantra Bhardwaj. Das alleged that Sanjay suffered a serious head injury and claimed that police refused to add an attempt-to-murder charge under Section 307 of the Indian Penal Code.
“Allow me to tell you what exactly happened after BJP-protected goon Swatantra Bhardwaj's attack on Dalit man Sanjay at our Jantar Mantar protest,” Das wrote.
He alleged that Sanjay’s skull was “cracked open” and that the injury warranted an attempt-to-murder charge. Das claimed that CJP members asked police to add a grievous-injury section but that Delhi Police officials refused.
According to Das, DCP Sachin Sharma and ACP Ajay Sharma told the protesters to “go get a court order” when they sought stricter charges.
Das also alleged that the other people who were allegedly involved in the assault had not been identified, despite claims that some of them posted videos after the incident and threatened Nishu.
Das also questioned the alleged role of Delhi Minister Kapil Mishra after Bhardwaj claimed in a viral podcast that political connections helped him avoid jail following the incident.
“Now Bhardwaj openly flaunts of Delhi Minister Kapil Mishra pressuring the Police to release him from the Police Station and not to add any strict sections that can lead to his arrest!” Das wrote.
He asked why Mishra should not be made an accomplice if he interfered in the case and questioned whether he should resign.