Magistrate orders release of CJP leaders after Jantar Mantar protest custody

A special executive magistrate ordered the release of CJP leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka. The ruling rejected assumptions of an imminent threat as grounds for extending custody.

In Short

• Police sought five more custody days citing an imminent threat
• Defence said no threat existed and no protest was planned
• Both were detained for allegedly breaching bonds to maintain peace

The Cockroach Janta Party on Wednesday welcomed a special executive magistrate's order releasing its leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka after their judicial custody ended in connection with the October 14 protest at Jantar Mantar, news agency Press Trust of India reported.

Party founder Abhijeet Dipke described Das and Ranka as “much, much bigger leaders” than him, while CJP legal head Ratna Singh said the decision should have come earlier.

In a social media post, Dipke said he was willing to follow their orders. “Saurav and Ashu are not just better but much, much bigger leaders than me. Happy to follow your orders, my leaders. Jaan hazir hai!” he said.

He added in Hindi, “Lekin iske baad mere bina garden mein koi akela nahi ghumega!!!” which means, “But after this, don't go alone in the garden without me.” In another post, Dipke shared a photograph of Das and Ranka with the caption “My leaders”.

“We welcome the decision. I think this decision should have been taken long ago, but it is not too late,” Singh told PTI.

She said the police had sought a five-day extension of their custody, citing an imminent threat. The defence argued that there was no such threat and no call for a protest. “You cannot take that as an assumption and extend the judicial custody. The SEM has taken that on record,” she said.

Das and Ranka were initially sent to five days of judicial custody on October 14 after being detained for allegedly entering the denotified protest site at Jantar Mantar and violating bonds to maintain peace. Their custody was extended by two days on October 19.

Asked about the Delhi High Court's observations earlier in the day, Singh said the judge was entitled to express an opinion, but the CJP did not necessarily agree with it. “They have given their opinion. It is an observation, an oral observation. There was no discussion on the merits in the court. We were here today for the release of Saurav and Ashutosh, for which we had been trying for the past week. Finally, that has happened,” she said.

Singh told PTI that the team was emotional and eager to meet the two leaders. “The team is also very emotional right now. They also want to meet them because everyone has not met them for a long time,” she said.

She expressed hope that nobody's liberty would be restricted in future over issues related to sureties or other technical reasons. Singh added that the release order had been sent and the team hoped to see Das and Ranka soon.

Earlier, the Delhi High Court had declined to intervene in their judicial custody and asked them to await the special executive magistrate's decision. It said they could approach the appellate court if their grievance remained. The magistrate subsequently ordered their release after their judicial custody expired.

- Ends