Amid the raging controversy over Hindutva influencer Swatantra Bhardwaj's alleged attack on the father of an activist at Jantar Mantar in July, Cockroach Janta Party founder Abhijeet Dipke has called for prosecution of DCP Sachin Sharma of the Delhi Police for not taking action against him.
Dipke said that Nishu Aazad, whose father was assaulted by Bhardwaj, she had ‘begged’ the cops to arrest the accused. However, even two months after the incident, the culprits have not been held, Dipke alleged in a post on X. Track live updates on CJP protest
“When Nishu’s father was attacked by the sanghi goons, she cried and begged DCP Sachin Sharma and Delhi police to arrest the culprits. Even after two months the goons are roaming free. DCP Sachin Sharma must be prosecuted for enabling this crime,” Dipke wrote.
Deep Dive
What actions have been taken by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) regarding the alleged attack on Nishu Aazad's father?
Why do critics believe that the Delhi Police is protecting Hindutva influencer Swatantra Bhardwaj?
How did Swatantra Bhardwaj justify his actions during the altercation at the protest?
Dipke also accused DCP Sharma of being a ‘hardcore sanghi’. “DCP Sachin Sharma must explain why that Sanghi goon is still not behind bars. Is it because, Sachin Sharma himself is a hardcore Sanghi? As I’ve been told by people from within his own department,” he wrote in another post on X.
{{/usCountry}}Dipke also accused DCP Sharma of being a ‘hardcore sanghi’. “DCP Sachin Sharma must explain why that Sanghi goon is still not behind bars. Is it because, Sachin Sharma himself is a hardcore Sanghi? As I’ve been told by people from within his own department,” he wrote in another post on X.
{{/usCountry}}In another post, Dipke implied that the police were shielding the influencer in the Jantar Mantar assault case.
What is the latest row about?
In an interview Bhardwaj, who describes himself as 'kattar Hindu' (hardline Hindu) admitted that he "cracked the skull" of Sanjay Kumar, student protester Nishu Azad's father, during the protest and escaped being jailed despite the seriousness of the alleged offence.
The CJP, which had organised the protest at Jantar Mantar where the alleged incident took place, has been demanding Bharadwaj's arrest and alleging that Delhi Police failed to take adequate action against him.
The controversy escalated on Thursday after Delhi Police said Kumar had suffered a simple head injury during a scuffle and rejected claims that his skull had been fractured.
Police said Bhardwaj and another accused, Suraj Kumar, had been detained at the spot, questioned and served notices, and that a chargesheet would be filed.
However, following the uproar, Bhardwaj denied the remarks on Friday and claimed that the purported video being shared online was "fake". Bhardwaj denied making such remarks and alleged that he attacked the other person in "self-defence" or he would have been "lynched".
"If I had not acted in self-defence, I could have been lynched by the mob or killed. There was no attempt to attack him. I have proofs in the form of video. I was gheraoed by 10-15 people. When I acted in self-defence, he was hit on the head by my kada," he was quoted as saying by ANI.
CJP members on are now on a sit-in at the Parliament Street police station in New Delhi, seeking action against Bhardwaj.