IndiaPosted at: Oct 21 2026 7:24PM


CJP leaders Saurav Das, Ashutosh Ranka released after SEM court order

New Delhi, Oct 21 (UNI) Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka were ordered to be released by a Special Executive Magistrate (SEM) court on Wednesday, bringing an end to their latest spell of judicial custody in connection with their protest at Jantar Mantar.
The two leaders were produced before the SEM after completing two days of judicial custody. The court ordered their release after their sureties were submitted during the proceedings. The development came after Delhi Police sought a further three-day extension of their custody.
Earlier in the day, the Delhi High Court questioned the appropriateness of the leaders’ plea challenging their continued detention, advising them to pursue the statutory remedy available under the law before approaching the High Court.
Justice Subramonium Prasad made the observations while hearing a petition challenging the SEM’s October 19 order extending the duo’s judicial custody by two days after their sureties were rejected.
Following the court’s suggestion, the leaders, through their counsel Abhik Chimni, withdrew the petition to await the proceedings before the SEM, which was scheduled to reconsider their sureties later in the day. The High Court did not examine the merits of the challenge.
“Your remedy actually lies in revision. There is a difference between maintainability and entertainability… If that is a revisable order, why come in 226?” Justice Prasad asked, referring to the High Court’s writ jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution.
The judge advised the counsel to reserve his arguments for the appropriate forum, saying, “Instead of arguing now, why not keep your powder dry for revision court and then this court.”
During the hearing, the court also questioned the circumstances surrounding the protest and the alleged breach of a peace bond by the two leaders.
When informed that Das was 27 and Ranka 32, Justice Prasad remarked, “Then you are not Gen Z. What is Gen Z?” He subsequently observed, “People remain the same, cause is changing,” while enquiring about the organisers’ affiliations and the purpose of their association.
Questioning the alleged attempt to breach barricades, the judge cautioned that a demonstration described as peaceful could draw additional participants and potentially lead to a breach of public-order restrictions.
“When you go and break a barricade, the chances of 10 or 20 more people in violation of Section 163 (BNSS) is very high,” he observed.
The judge also said that police permission for demonstrations served to prevent outsiders from disrupting a gathering, adding that organisers might not be able to control everyone joining a protest.
The court further questioned whether insisting on sureties was unlawful when authorities alleged that an individual had violated an earlier bond.
“A person goes there, gives a bond, breaks the bond. In such a case, insistence on a surety, can it be said to be that illegal or that much against the law?” Justice Prasad asked.
The case relates to preventive action initiated against the two CJP leaders following their detention at Indira Gandhi International Airport on October 10. They had furnished bonds of Rs 50,000 each before being detained again over their alleged attempt to enter Jantar Mantar.
Delhi Police had de-notified Jantar Mantar as a designated protest site on October 11. The leaders were subsequently placed in judicial custody, with their counsel questioning the basis for the authorities’ apprehension of an imminent threat to public order cited in the SEM’s order extending their detention.UNI PWS AAB
Tags: #CJP leaders Saurav Das# Ashutosh Ranka released after SEM court order
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