CJP's Saurav Das, Ashutosh Ranka Released After 7 Days In Jail

A Special Executive Magistrate in Delhi has ordered the release of Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, who have been in judicial custody since October 14 for entering and waving national flags at Jantar Mantar, which has been denotified as a designated protest site. 

Ranka and Das, who are spokespersons for the CJP, scaled the locked gates of Jantar Mantar on October 13 and waved national flags to protest the denotification. This act, the prosecution said, was in breach of a peace bond they had signed after being detained on October 10. 

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The spokespersons were produced before the Special Executive Magistrate on October 14 and initially sent to judicial custody for five days. The custody was extended by two days on Monday. 

The CJP, which was founded by Abhijeet Dipke, had alleged that proceedings were deliberately being delayed to prevent the release of the two leaders and approached the Delhi High Court against the order extending their custody.

The high court heard the petition earlier on Wednesday and highlighted the "breach of bond". It also referred to countries like France, though it did not take any names, where protests have turned violent.

"You are at the forefront (of the protest). When you break barricades, there are chances that more people may follow. There might be persons who may not be under your control," the court pointed out, adding, "We have seen it happen outside our country. What started as student protests turned into something with arson and burning of buildings."

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The bench also asked how old Ranka and Das were and, when told that they were 27 and 31, noted that they were not Gen Z. It also questioned the causes of their protests. The CJP had agitated against paper leaks, including the NEET leak, in June and July and is now demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over his alleged unilateral manner of functioning and irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision of voter rolls.

"How old are millennials? It (the earlier agitation) was a student protest, and children were there, but now it is another cause. People remain the same, but the cause has changed," it remarked.

During the hearing before the magistrate, the Delhi Police sought three more days of judicial custody for the spokespersons and both sides were heard before the order was reserved. After 6 pm, the magistrate ordered their release, stating that their sureties/peace bonds had been accepted.