Indian police detain ‘cockroach’ movement founder Abhijeet Dipke
Police also detained around 500 people on their way to the protest venue as security was tightened across the national capital
NEW DELHI: Police in the Indian capital Delhi detained the founder of the Cockroach Janta Party, Abhijeet Dipke, on Saturday, ahead of a protest called by the youth movement demanding the resignation of the country’s chief election commissioner, the party said.
TV channels reported earlier that police officers met Dipke at the Delhi airport after he arrived from the financial capital Mumbai and asked him to call off the protest as authorities had banned it.
CJP leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka were also detained from their flight upon landing, the movement said in a statement. Courtesy, Reuters said.
The party announced the detentions in a statement, but details regarding the legal grounds for the detentions, the duration of police custody and whether the leaders would face formal charges were not immediately clear.
The incident highlights tensions surrounding the planned protest and the authorities’ decision to prohibit the gathering. Further developments are expected as more information becomes available about the detained leaders and the status of the demonstration.
Police also detained around 500 people on their way to the protest venue as security was tightened across the national capital to prevent a large gathering.
Delhi is under an unprecedented security blanket, with around 25,000 police and paramilitary personnel deployed across the city. Forty-five metro stations face entry and exit restrictions, and surveillance has been increased in the national capital ahead of a proposed protest.
Dipke’s grandmother died
Cockroach Janta Party founder Abhijeet Dipke’s paternal grandmother passed away on Saturday. She was 85.
Family sources told ETV Bharat that Dipke’s grandmother, Savitribai Dipke, had been unwell for the last few days and passed away this morning at their native village, Santuk Pimpri, in Maharashtra’s Hingoli district.
News of her death came barely a few hours after Dipke was detained by Delhi Police right from inside the plane as soon as he landed here.
Dipke and his fellow CJP activists Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka were on their way from Mumbai to Delhi to participate in the proposed CJP protest against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
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