Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke was arrested by Delhi Police on October 16 under preventive provisions ahead of planned protests in the capital. AISA president Neha Bora, who was also detained that evening, was released after the completion of formalities under Section 65 of the Delhi Police Act, according to police.
Police said action was taken against Dipke under Sections 126 and 170 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS). He will be produced before a Special Executive Magistrate (SEM) today.
According to police, Dipke had been served two notices directing him not to visit Central Park in Connaught Place, but he allegedly failed to comply. Police said his detention was linked to concerns over a breach of peace.
Police are also expected to tell the magistrate that Dipke violated the conditions of a peace bond furnished during an earlier preventive arrest. He had reportedly furnished a bond of Rs 50,000 and been directed not to disturb public peace for one year.
The detentions came ahead of planned 'Tiranga' and anti-Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) protests in New Delhi.
CJP QUESTIONS DIPKE'S DETENTION
CJP had alleged that Dipke was taken to an undisclosed location and that the party had lost contact with him. It also claimed he was not being allowed to speak to lawyers.
“The Delhi Police has taken Abhijeet Dipke to an undisclosed location. We have lost contact with him. He is not being allowed to talk to lawyers,” the party said in a post on X.
“Why does this government treat youth like terrorists? We are equal citizens of India and we deserve all the protections and rights of the Constitution!” it added.
The party also questioned the grounds for his detention, saying Dipke had been carrying the national flag when he left his residence.
“Abhijeet was just walking out of his home with a Tiranga in his hand! How can walking with a tiranga be a crime?” CJP asked, adding that the detentions would not deter people from joining the protests.
CJP SOUGHT DETAILS OF DIPKE'S WHEREABOUTS
CJP had also written to the station house officer of Delhi's Mandir Marg police station, seeking information about its founder's whereabouts and the legal grounds for his detention.
In the letter, party leader Rohan Deshpande said the organisation had received no information about the police station or facility where Dipke was being held.
“This lack of information is deeply concerning,” Deshpande wrote.
He urged the police to disclose Dipke's location, the legal provisions invoked against him and the grounds for his preventive detention. He also sought details of the authority under whose directions the detention was ordered and the officer responsible for his custody.
Deshpande further called on the police to ensure that Dipke could contact his colleagues and access legal counsel.
AISA ALLEGED REPEATED SHIFTING OF BORA
The All India Students' Association (AISA) earlier said its president, Neha Bora, had been traced to the RK Puram police station after hours of uncertainty over her whereabouts, but alleged that she had been moved between locations across Delhi for nearly five hours.
The student organisation said lawyers who reached the police station around midnight were denied access to Bora. It also alleged that police had not clarified the grounds for her detention or when she would be released, despite being aware that she had been unwell for the past few days.
“The police is not allowing lawyers to meet Neha at RK Puram. They are not allowing medication to be given too,” AISA said in a post on X, demanding to know the charges under which she was being held.
“Why is Delhi Police holding Neha until midnight in a police station? When will Neha be released? Why is a women student leader being put in a police station at midnight?” the organisation asked.
Bora's whereabouts had remained unclear for hours before AISA said she had been traced to the RK Puram police station. The organisation had earlier alleged that she was taken to an Anti-Narcotics Task Force facility in Delhi's South-West district before being moved elsewhere.
TWO CJP LEADERS SENT TO TIHAR JAIL
The latest action follows the detention of other CJP leaders amid protests in the capital.
CJP leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka were EARLIER THIS WEEK sent to Tihar Jail for five days for allegedly violating their peace bonds and trespassing at Jantar Mantar, which was recently denotified as a designated protest site.
