NEW DELHI: A special executive magistrate (SEM) court in Delhi on Wednesday reserved its order on the judicial custody of Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka. The Delhi Police sought a three-day extension of their custody.The two were produced before the magistrate, with their sureties submitted during the proceedings.Earlier in the day, Das and Ranka had challenged the extension of their custody before the Delhi high court. However, the court asked them to await the SEM’s decision and approach the appropriate appellate or revisional forum if their grievance persisted. The activists subsequently withdrew their plea.The Delhi HC also questioned why the duo had invoked its writ jurisdiction under Article 226 of the Constitution when an alternative legal remedy was available.“Your second incident. You are a person who has actually broken a bond. Your remedy actually lies in revision,” the court observed while hearing the challenge to the SEM’s October 19 order.The bench also questioned whether authorities could impose stricter surety conditions following an alleged second breach of a peace bond.“Once you have broken peace for the second time, are the authorities not entitled to insist upon everything?” the court asked.
Court flags risk of further violations at Jantar Mantar
The court noted that the challenge to the denotification of Jantar Mantar as a designated protest site was pending before the Supreme Court and that the notification had not been stayed. It also expressed concern that breaching barricades could encourage others to violate prohibitory orders under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS).“The two petitioners here are at the forefront. When you go and break a barricade, the chances of 10 or 20 more people in violation of 163 are very high,” the court observed.Advocate Abhik Chimni, appearing for the petitioners, argued that the SEM lacked jurisdiction to extend their custody and that preventive proceedings were being used arbitrarily. He also challenged the rejection of their sureties, stating that additional sureties had been available but were not considered.The petitioners contended that their continued detention was illegal and that the authorities had failed to establish an imminent threat to peace and tranquillity. They sought the quashing of the October 19 order and their release.The high court clarified that it had not expressed any opinion on the merits of the case before permitting the withdrawal of the plea.
CJP leaders detained after Jantar Mantar protest
Das and Ranka were initially remanded to five days of judicial custody on October 14 after being detained for allegedly entering Jantar Mantar, which had been denotified as a designated protest site, and violating peace bonds. Their custody was extended by two days on October 19, with the order set to expire on Wednesday.The case stems from their protest at Jantar Mantar on October 13. They have challenged their detention under Sections 126 and 170 of the BNSS, arguing that the allegations relate to events that had already occurred and do not establish an imminent threat warranting continued detention.