NEW DELHI — Delhi Police detained Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) founder Abhijit Dipke and two other party members aboard an aircraft shortly after it landed in the Indian capital on Saturday, ahead of a planned protest at Jantar Mantar, Indian media outlet NDTV reported.
Dipke was travelling from Mumbai to Delhi to lead the demonstration against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. Police officers entered the aircraft after it landed and detained Dipke, along with CJP members Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, before they could leave the plane.
Dipke broadcast the incident live on Instagram. The footage showed a commotion inside the aircraft as party members questioned why police had not waited for them to disembark before taking action.
Addressing the female police officers who entered the plane, Dipke was heard saying they could have waited until the passengers had exited before making the arrests. He also declared that the party members were not afraid of being arrested.
In a statement, the CJP condemned the detentions, describing them as an authoritarian move designed to prevent the protest’s leadership from reaching the demonstration site.
The party alleged that police had deliberately obstructed the leaders’ movement before the planned peaceful gathering. It called for the immediate and unconditional release of Dipke, Das and Ranka.
The detentions followed the earlier arrests of YouTuber Dhruv Rathee and CJP legal cell chief Ratna Singh at their respective residences on Saturday morning. Both were reportedly detained to prevent them from joining the demonstration.
Delhi Police had refused permission for the CJP protest on Friday, saying the organisers had not applied sufficiently in advance.
Authorities imposed extensive restrictions across the capital ahead of the planned gathering. According to the report, 45 metro stations were closed and dozens of train services were cancelled. More than 20,000 personnel from the Delhi Police and central armed police forces were deployed to maintain law and order.
The developments have intensified tensions surrounding the planned demonstration, with the CJP accusing authorities of curtailing freedom of movement and suppressing peaceful political expression.
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