Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke was detained by Delhi Police at his residence on Friday, October 16, just minutes before he was scheduled to participate in a ‘Lehra Do Tiranga’ rally in the national capital. This marks the second time in less than a week that Dipke has been detained by the police over his plans to stage a protest in Delhi.
The latest detention came after police personnel reached Dipke’s residence and served him a notice warning against proceeding with the proposed rally. The police cited prohibitory orders in the Connaught Place area and the absence of permission from the New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) for the proposed Tiranga Yatra.
According to the notice, issued under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), restrictions were in force in the area. The police warned that proceeding with the march without the necessary permission could constitute a violation of the law and invite legal action.
During his interaction with the officers, Dipke was reportedly told, “You cannot go to New Delhi. We are detaining you.” He questioned the grounds for the action, responding, “I cannot go to New Delhi, but I can go somewhere else. What law have I broken?”
In a video of the exchange, Dipke can be seen sitting in his living room, wearing a white T-shirt featuring Gandhi and denims, with a small national flag draped across his shoulders. He examines the papers handed to him by the police and challenges the officers over the allegations against him.
“What kind of accusation have you levelled against me?” he asks in the video, as he reads through the notice and confronts the police personnel present at his residence.
The police clarified that waving the national flag was not prohibited. However, they maintained that organising an unauthorised procession or gathering a crowd in violation of the restrictions imposed in the area could invite legal action. Dipke was also reminded of the requirement to treat the Tricolour with due respect under the Flag Code of India.
Second detention in less than a week
Dipke’s latest detention follows an earlier episode in which he was detained shortly after his flight from Mumbai landed in Delhi. On that occasion, he had planned to protest against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over allegations of voter-list manipulation during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
The proposed ‘Lehra Do Tiranga’ rally was also linked to the arrest of two CJP members, Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka. The duo were sent to five days of judicial custody after entering Jantar Mantar while waving the national flag on October 13.
Their arrest came a day after Jantar Mantar, a prominent protest venue in the national capital, was denotified as a protest site.
The developments have brought the CJP’s proposed demonstration and the police restrictions surrounding it into focus. While Dipke and his associates have sought to stage protests involving the national flag, the police have cited restrictions on public gatherings and the absence of official permission as grounds for preventive action.
