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Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke and All India Students’ Association (AISA) president Neha Bora were detained by Delhi Police on Friday, October 16 ahead of the scheduled ‘Lehra Do Tiranga’ protest at Connaught Place.
Abhijeet Dipke was detained at his Jhandewalan residence, while Neha Bora was picked up from Mandi House in central Delhi. The protest, called by the CJP at Central Park, was part of the party’s campaign demanding Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar’s resignation over the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.
Earlier in the day, Abhijeet expressed concerns over the heavy deployment of security forces to halt the Tiranga yatra. “Why are you against Tiranga,” he asked, tagging Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Reports said that Abhijeet received two police notices on Friday. One, issued under the Delhi Police Act, directed him not to visit Central Park because of restrictions in force.
The other, from South West Delhi Police, referred to an earlier incident in which Abhijeet, Ashutosh Ranka and Saurav Das were taken into preventive custody at the airport and produced before a court. It cited a court directive requiring them to avoid causing public disturbance for one year.
During his interaction with the police, Abhijeet was told: “Aap New Delhi nahi jaa sakte. Hum aapko detain kar rahe hain” (“You cannot go to New Delhi. We are detaining you”).
Police said the New Delhi Municipal Council had not granted permission for the proposed Tiranga Yatra. In its notice to Abhijeet, police warned that an unauthorised march or gathering in breach of restrictions could invite legal action. The notice also reminded him to follow the Flag Code of India.
Neha Bora’s social media administrator said in a post on X that she had been detained and taken to an undisclosed location, adding that she did not have her phone. In a post at 8.39 pm, the account administrator called on Delhi Police to disclose where she was being held.
Meanwhile, former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin condemned the detentions, and asked about the whereabouts of the two prominent leaders of the protest.
“Detaining them without disclosing their whereabouts is blatantly illegal and deeply inhumane.The Union Government must release them immediately and stop suppressing peaceful protests. Every attempt to crush the movement will only make it stronger.”
He said that the Union government has no other option except for seeking the resignation of Gyanesh Kumar.
