Annamalai backs questions raised by CJP, says 'arrests will only make them stronger’

Annamalai, ex-chief of Tamil Nadu BJP, said that while he may not agree with the CJP's modes of protests, he supports the questions that they have raised.

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K Annamalai of ‘We the Leaders’ movement has shown a measured support to the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) which is currently facing legal scrutiny over protests seeking the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged discrepancies in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls.

Annamalai, who is the former chief of Bharatiya Janata Party's Tamil Nadu unit, said on Tuesday that while he may not agree with CJP's modes of protests or their antics, but he supported the questions that they want to raise.

“I may not agree with many of the CJP's modes of protest. I may not agree with some of the antics of CJP. That's a different argument. But I completely support CJP in terms of the questions they want to raise. It is for the government to answer,” he said while speaking to reporters in Chennai, as he alleged that the Delhi Police have taken ‘law into their hands’.

He accused the Delhi Police of doing a ‘disservice’. “To arrest them for a violation and again to drag them in terms of how they spend their time in jail, that is only going to make the leaders of CJP stronger. I'm afraid of it. The Delhi police are doing a real disservice,” he said.

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His remarks came a day after a Delhi magistrate court extended the judicial custody of CJP's Ashutosh Ranka and Saurav Das by two more days in the Jantar Mantar trespassing case. In its order, the court said the duo showed ‘no respect for law’ and cited the police investigation which alleged that the duo ‘mobilised’ and ‘enticed’ the public as they used the social media to make repeated calls for protests at Jantar Mantar, which has been de-notified as a protest site.

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As Das left the court after the hearing, he claimed that there was a lack of justice and questioned the grounds on which the court rejected their sureties over allegations that they breached security and entered the site during the protest.

“We're in an emergency. There is no justice. This is a police court and you see what is happening. Just look at the ground that they have taken,” Das yelled out of a police van.

The remarks were captured by Smita Sharma Journalist, a YouTube channel. Ranka and Das were arrested last week and sent to five-day judicial custody after they attempted to stage a protest at Jantar Mantar in Delhi along with other CJP activists. The case has now been transferred to crime branch.

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  Sana started her career in 2018 with News18 and later moved to BoomLive. In the meantime, she thought it was a good idea to share what she learnt, hence took up part-time teaching of journalism course at Jamia Millia Islamia, which she says, she thoroughly enjoyed-not sure if the feeling was mutual. For a year, she also tried her hands at communication roles, only to realise she was more comfortable with news. So, joined HT in September 2025. Not much of a talker, always up for chai and sarcasm. And pun always intended. Her tag line is 'I will figure out, but I need to panic first'Read More