A day after securing bail, Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) leaders Ashutosh Ranka and Saurav Das have reportedly skipped scheduled questioning by the Delhi Police Crime Branch, seeking additional time instead. The development raises further questions about the party’s approach to the ongoing investigation and their respect for the authorities.
According to reports, the two leaders were expected to appear before the Crime Branch on Thursday, October 22, but requested more time. Police sources said they could issue fresh notices to summon them for questioning. The precise reasons for the questioning and the duo’s grounds for seeking an extension have not been fully disclosed.
The latest development comes after a legal battle over their detention following a protest at Jantar Mantar. The CJP leaders were arrested on October 13 after allegedly entering Jantar Mantar despite its recent removal from the list of designated protest sites. The group had raised slogans against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, protesting alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Their detention had come amid police concerns about a possible breach of peace. The authorities also questioned their compliance with earlier bonds submitted by them requiring them to maintain peace and good behaviour. Their lawyers argued that the proceedings raised concerns about due process, however, their recent behaviour further raises doubts about their respect for due process.
The bail granted to Ranka and Das offered a reprieve, but it did not bring the underlying proceedings to an end. The police investigation remains a separate matter, and the latest summons indicates that the authorities still want answers from the two leaders.
Now, if the police detain them again, there will be a hue and cry about the death of democracy, but isn’t respecting the legal process in a democracy also part of respecting the democratic process?
