Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke on Sunday accused the Delhi Police of inhumane and politically motivated treatment during his detention, alleging that officers denied him access to his phone and lawyer after informing him of his grandmother’s death.
Delhi Police says it offered assistance on humanitarian grounds
Dipke, along with fellow CJP activists Ashutosh Ranka and Saurav Das, was released after being produced before the Executive Magistrate at Delhi Cantt Police Station, according to CJP Legal Affairs Head Ratna Singh. Accusing the political establishment and the police of abusing their authority, Dipke launched a sharp attack on the force and Union Home Minister Amit Shah. Dipke maintained that he had not signed any bond and vowed to resume protests despite the arrests.
The preventive arrests came after the CJP called for a protest at Jantar Mantar on Saturday, demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. “They have no humanity, absolutely none. “We will take to the streets again; we will not be intimidated by people like Amit Shah and Modi. Throw us in jail not just once, but a hundred times, we do not fear your dictatorship. Recounting how he learnt of her death while in detention, the activist alleged that the police refused to let him contact his cousin in his village or speak to his lawyer. I then asked the Delhi Police to let me call my cousin who lives in the village; I requested them to bring my phone for just two minutes. Dipke added that he had also sought permission to contact his lawyer but was not allowed to do so. “By law, I have the right to call my lawyer as well. The Delhi Police did not allow that either; they wouldn’t let me call my lawyer,” he alleged. What was the intention behind this? “As soon as the Delhi Police received information about the passing away of Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) Founder Abhijeet Dipke’s grandmother, officers approached him to convey this sad news and offered all possible assistance. They sensitively asked if he needed help with flights, phone calls, or anything else. The demonstration was met with a heavy police deployment and mass detentions.
“My grandmother had just passed away due to health issues; my parents were already in a state of shock. Dipke alleged that police officers asked him to call his parents at 3.30 am to inform them of his arrest. “At 3:30 AM, the Delhi Police came and told me to call my parents and inform them that I had been arrested. Waking me up at 3:30 AM and telling me to call my parents waking them up too, to tell them I was under arrest?” he said. On top of that, these Delhi Police goons and brutes wanted me to call my parents at 3:30 AM and shock them,” he alleged. Savitribai Shankarrao Dipke died at the age of 85 in Santuk Pimpri village in Maharashtra’s Hingoli district after a prolonged illness and age-related ailments.
Speaking to reporters upon reaching Nagpur in Maharashtra, Dipke said he had not signed any bond and would not be intimidated by arrest, challenging the authorities to imprison him “not just once, but a hundred times”. In a post on X, Singh said the condition of their release was “no breach of peace for one year”. They are goons in uniform, thugs wearing the uniform and Amit Shah has turned them into such hooligans,” he said. We will put an end to your dictatorship,” he said. “The Delhi Police came and told me that my grandmother had died. They refused, saying they couldn’t bring the phone and asked me to provide the number instead,” he said. He said his parents were already in shock following his grandmother’s death after health-related complications. The Delhi Police, meanwhile, said it had informed Dipke of his grandmother’s death and offered assistance to help him travel to his hometown on humanitarian grounds. DCP Neha Yadav said officers approached Dipke as soon as they received information about the death and offered help with travel arrangements and communication. They repeatedly asked if he wished to speak to his parents, but he declined,” Yadav said. Dipke said he was travelling to his village to be with his family. Earlier, Dipke had said that 10 October would go down as “the beginning of the end of this dictatorship”. (With ANI inputs)
He also questioned the decision to ask him to inform his parents about his arrest in the early hours of the morning, saying the call added to the distress of a family already grieving a loss. Dipke’s allegations came amid a period of family mourning following the death of his paternal grandmother, Savitribai Shankarrao Dipke, aged 85.
