Guwahati: Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) co-convenors Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka were remanded to judicial custody for two more days on Monday after being produced before a newly appointed Special Executive Magistrate at Delhi’s Mandir Marg police station.
The extension comes amid allegations by the CJP that authorities are deliberately delaying bail proceedings to prevent the release of the two leaders, who were initially remanded to five days of judicial custody on October 13 following a protest at Jantar Mantar.
Das and Ranka were taken into custody after they allegedly climbed over a locked gate to enter Jantar Mantar, which had earlier been de-notified as a designated protest site. Along with other CJP workers, they displayed the national flag and raised slogans against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar before being detained under preventive provisions.
They were subsequently produced before a Special Executive Magistrate and remanded to judicial custody.
On Monday, police sought an extension of their custody, following which the magistrate ordered that they remain in jail for another two days. The two leaders are scheduled to be produced before the magistrate again on Wednesday.
The development follows a claim by the Special Executive Magistrate hearing their bail matter on Sunday that unknown persons had threatened him. Police subsequently registered a non-cognisable report in connection with the alleged threat.
CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke accused the authorities of deliberately prolonging the detention of the two leaders.
“The state is deliberately prolonging Ashu and Saurav’s illegal arrest by using every dirty trick in the book to delay court proceedings and prevent their release,” Dipke said in a post on X.
He further alleged that the authorities had no legal grounds to keep the two leaders in custody and were relying on delays to prevent their release.
The CJP has also alleged that bail sureties submitted for the release of Das and Ranka were rejected on vague grounds.