‘Would've violated law, instigated others’: Delhi Police on 3 CJP leaders' arrest, judicial custody

The arrests come a day after police detained 14 CJP workers after they scaled an iron gate of an office premises to enter the now-denotified Jantar Mantar.

The Delhi police arrested three members of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) because there was a serious apprehension that they would again violate the law and instigate others to do the same if released on bail, a senior police officer said on Wednesday.

Police personnel outside the Tihar Jail on Wednesday after Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka were sent to five-day judicial custody (PTI)

The arrests come a day after police detained 14 CJP workers after they scaled an iron gate of an office premises to enter the now-denotified Jantar Mantar protest site. To be sure, the area has been cordoned off with police barricades since the last week of September ahead of the BJP’s October 10 project. Heavy security continues to be deployed in the area.

Police said CJP members Sourav Das, Ashutosh Ranka and Ajinkya Shinde were arrested under preventive provisions of law following allegations that the three repeatedly attempted to disturb public peace and violate the law.

Deep Dive

Why did Delhi Police arrest the three CJP leaders after the Jantar Mantar entry?

Why were Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka sent to five days of judicial custody?

What action did the magistrate take against Ajinkya Shinde?

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“Their alleged attempts to use social media to instigate others to participate in similar unlawful activities were also taken into account”, deputy commissioner of police (New Delhi) Sachin Sharma said.

The three were produced before a special executive magistrate (SEM), where proceedings were initiated under Sections 126 and 170 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS).

After considering the police report, the magistrate remanded Das and Ranka to five days of judicial custody, while Shinde was bound down to maintain peace and good behaviour for six months on a personal bond and surety of ₹5,000, police said.

The two provisions empower a special executive magistrate to hold seek a bond from someone likely to disturb public tranquility, and allowing police to make a preventive arrest without a warrant for up to 24 hours to stop a serious crime from happening.

Two first information reports (FIRs) were registered in connection with the incident at the Connaught Place police station under sections 223(a), 332 and 61(2) relating to disobedience of a public servant’s order, house-trespass to commit an offence and criminal conspiracy, respectively. A second FIR was also registered against them at Parliament Street police station under sections 221, 115(2), 132, 121(1) and 3(5) relating to obstructing a public servant, voluntarily causing hurt, using criminal force to deter a public servant from duty, causing hurt to deter a public servant from duty, and acts committed with common intention, respectively.

Sharma did not comment on the registration of two FIRs.

The CJP protests are part of a longer string of events that have mounted pressure on Kumar over the controversial special intensive revision – which has already deleted 130 million names from India’s electoral rolls – and other allegations. The developments follow an Indian Express investigation that said election commissioners SS Sandhu and Vivek Joshi recorded written dissents and objections at least 14 times between November 2025 and August 2026 and even wrote to the cabinet secretary. It also alleged that election officials found their access to the ECI software curtailed by the central IT team. ECI said differing views and observations were a normal part of deliberation and that all its digital platforms operated under strict data security protocols.