May need to stage peaceful protest if accused not arrested within 72 hours: Saurav Das amid Jantar Mantar assault row

"We are set to receive copies of two FIRs by this evening, and the arrest is guaranteed within 72 hours. If the arrest does not happen, we are prepared to take further action," Das told ANI.

Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) chief spokesperson Saurav Das on Friday warned that the public pressure group would stage a peaceful protest if the accused in the case involving protester Nishu Azad are not arrested within 72 hours. Speaking to ANI, he said CJP members were compelled to take to the streets and approach the police after they received no satisfactory action in the case involving Sanjay Azad (Nishu's father), who suffered a severe head injury during the Jantar Mantar protests.

"We were compelled to take to the streets again; we went to the Parliament Street Police Station to present our demands. Our demands were straightforward," Das said. He questioned why an "attempt to murder" charge had not been invoked. He also alleged that Swatantra Bhardwaj had confessed to attempting murder in a podcast interview.

Das said the delegation demanded the inclusion of sections 307, 308 and 326, along with provisions of the SC/ST Act, and sought the immediate arrest of those allegedly involved in the incident. According to Das, Azad Samaj Party (Kanshi Ram) chief Chandrashekhar Azad and independent MP Pappu Yadav also reached the police station, while Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi sent his legal team. CJP's lawyers were also present during the meeting with the Additional DCP.

"We all met with the Additional DCP and conveyed that such brutality in the nation's capital is absolutely unacceptable," Das said. He claimed that the police assured them that the accused would be arrested within 72 hours and that other persons allegedly involved in the incident would also be identified.

Das further said that authorities assured them that they would receive an acknowledgement of the complaint by Friday evening. He also alleged that Nishu had been receiving online threats from Swatantra Bhardwaj and others, including comments targeting her caste. The CJP chief spokesperson said the delegation demanded that the complaint be converted into an FIR and that relevant provisions under POCSO, the SC/ST Act and cybercrime laws be invoked.

"We are set to receive copies of two FIRs by this evening, and the arrest is guaranteed within 72 hours. If the arrest does not happen, we are prepared to take further action," Das said. He added that while Friday was focused on dialogue with the police, the CJP could stage a peaceful protest if the assurances were not fulfilled.

"Today was for dialogue, tomorrow we may need to stage a peaceful protest, and everyone is ready for that," he said. Earlier in the day, Chandrashekhar Azad on Friday warned of a “major stand” if police fail to arrest the accused within 72 hours in connection with the alleged assault on CJP protester Nishu Azad’s father during the Jantar Mantar protests.

Speaking to ANI, he said he had given the police 72 hours to arrest the accused while invoking the SC/ST Act and relevant sections, including the charge of attempt to murder. “What happened is horrifying. An individual who is accused and visible in the video is admitting that he beat Nishu's father. It is alarming how he is making a mockery of law and order, the Delhi Police, and our Constitution by acting with such impunity,” Azad said.

He said he visited the police station and raised the issue with police officials, stressing that Nishu belongs to the Scheduled Caste (SC) community and that provisions of the PoA (Prevention of Atrocities) Act should be invoked in the case. “I went to the police station and spoke to the officers there, pointing out that the girl belongs to a Scheduled Caste. You need to implement the SC/ST Act here,” he said.

Meanwhile, Nishu Azad sought security for herself, saying she feared for her safety amid alleged threats and had no idea when or where she could be attacked. Azad, whose father was allegedly attacked by Swatantra Bhardwaj during the CJP protest at Jantar Mantar, said Delhi Police had assured her that the accused would be arrested within 72 hours. Speaking to ANI, Azad said, “We need security; we have no idea when or where someone might attack us. These people are issuing open threats now.”

She alleged that the serious charges were not included in the FIR registered against the accused, allowing him to remain at large. "We demanded that the FIR include charges under Section 307 and the SC/ST Act, and that the accused be arrested immediately. The police have assured us that they will arrest within 72 hours," Nishu Azad said.

Months after the NEET protest at Jantar Mantar, tensions flared at the Parliament Street Police Station as spokesperson of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka gathered there to demand strict action against Swatantra Bhardwaj, after a video of him went viral in which he purportedly claimed that, despite allegedly attacking the father of activist Nishu Azad, he didn't go to jail because of his political connections. Leader of Opposition (LoP) Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi also extended support to protester Nishu Aazad, accusing the Centre of shielding a criminal who allegedly attacked her father.

In a post on X, Gandhi responded to a plea from Aazad, who claimed that despite a viral video of the accused admitting to the crime, the Delhi Police has failed to take action for over a month and a half. "Nishu, there's no need to panic. I'm with you. It's clear that you're being targeted because you raise your voice for the rights of your community and students," Rahul Gandhi posted.

Launching a scathing attack on Prime Minister Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Gandhi questioned the alleged inaction of the Delhi Police. "Amit Shah's Delhi Police, on one hand, commits inhuman brutality against students. On the other hand, the criminal who smashed the head of a Dalit girl's father is roaming freely in the open. Narendra Modi ji, Amit Shah ji—Why does such a criminal have the protection of you and the people in your party? Will there be action now, or will you keep shielding someone?" Gandhi wrote, concluding his post with "Jai Bhim. Jai Constitution." (ANI)