‘Attacked by mob, acted in self-defence’: Delhi Police detains Swatantra Bharadwaj in Jantar Mantar assault case

Influencer Swatantra Bharadwaj was arrested by Delhi Police on allegation of attaching Sanjay Azad.
Influencer Swatantra Bharadwaj (via NDTV) and Ambedkarite activist Sanjay Azad (via ANI)

The Delhi Police on Friday (4th September) detained influencer Swatantra Bharadwaj near Dhamra Nara village in Bulandshahr hours after assuring a Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) delegation of his arrest within 72 hours. Earlier in the day, an FIR was lodged by the Delhi Police against Bharadwaj on allegations of assaulting CJP activist Nishu Azad’s father and Ambedkarite ‘activist’ Sanjay Azad during the CJP-led protests at Jantar in June. Another accused named Suraj Kumar was also arrested by the police along with Bharadwaj.

The action comes after CJP leaders demanded legal action against the influencer under the provisions of an attempt to murder and the SC/ST Act for the alleged attack on Azad. Hundreds of protestors led by CJP leaders Sourav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, Indian Youth Congress President Akshay Lakra, Bhim Army Chief Chandrashekhar Ravan, and Independent MP Pappu Yadav gathered at Parliament Street Police Station to pressure the police into taking legal action against Bharadwaj. The Delhi Police had assured swift action against Bharadwaj.

The controversy arose after Swatantra Bharadwaj recently claimed on a podcast that he attacked Nishu Azad’s father during the CJP-led protests at Jantar Mantar. However, he clarified today that he acted in self-defence as a mob of protestors had almost lynched him at the protest site.

Speaking to the media, Bharadwaj said that a mob of around 25-30 people, which included Sanjay Azad, had attacked him during the protests at Jantar Mantar. As he was trying to defend himself from the mob, the kada that he was wearing on his wrist might have hit Sanjay Azad’s head. He dismissed the allegations that he deliberately attacked Azad in an attempt to kill him.

Viral video shows a violent mob attacking Bharadwaj

Meanwhile, a video showing Swatantra Bharadwaj getting brutally attacked by a mob recently surfaced on social media. Activist Dr Neha Das shared the video on X on Friday, in which Bharadwaj is seen being brutally thrashed by a group of people. The video shows Delhi police personnel trying to intervene and release Bharadwaj from the clutches of the mob. After much struggle, the police personnel managed to save Bharadwaj from the mob.

Sanjay Azad said Bharadwaj hit him ‘unintentionally’

A video of Nishu Azad’s father has also gone viral on social media, in which he is heard talking about the attack on him. In the video, reportedly released on 24th July, Sanjay Azad said that the injury on his head was inflicted unintentionally. He threatened Bharadwaj, saying that if the Delhi Police had not intervened that day, Bharadwaj would have faced a much worse fate.

“…you (Swatantra Bharadwaj) think you achieved something big by hitting me on the head unintentionally. I want to tell you that if the police had not arrived for another couple of minutes, you can guess from the photo (adds a photo of assault on Bharadwaj) what awaited you…” Azad said in the video. Azad then challenged Bharadwaj to a one-on-one confrontation. “Let’s do a 1v1. I will come wherever you want,” Azad added.

As Sanjay Azad is speaking in the video, a small injury mark is visible on his forehead. Yesterday, the Delhi Police rejected the claims of a serious head injury to Sanjay Azad and said that he suffered a simple head injury.

Sanjay Azad’s daughter, Nishu Azad, had gained attention during the CJP-led protest in June after a video went viral showing her hurling abuses at PM Modi and inviting people to a feast for PM Modi’s death. She later denied saying the words.

Written by OpIndia Staff
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