In an unusual incident aboard a commercial flight, Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) members Abhijeet Dipke, Saurav Das and Aushtosh Ranka were detained inside an aircraft shortly after it landed in Delhi on Saturday, ahead of their planned protest against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
A team of Delhi Police officers, consisting largely of women personnel, boarded the Air India flight from Mumbai within minutes of its arrival and detained the three men as fellow passengers watched and recorded the incident. Videos captured on several mobile phones showed Dipke visibly agitated as he told the officers that he "had come to get arrested".
The CJP condemned the police action, describing the detention as authoritarian and a "blatant violation of freedom of movement".
In a statement issued on Saturday, the party strongly criticised the detention of Dipke, Das and Ranka. It alleged that the police had planned the interception in advance to stop its leaders from reaching the protest venue, calling the move an attempt to undermine the leadership of a peaceful demonstration.
Shortly before he was detained, Dipke posted a video on Instagram claiming that police officers were taking him and his associates into custody as they stepped off the aircraft at Delhi Airport.
In the video, Dipke can be heard alleging, "So, you can see that Delhi Police is entering the plane to arrest us. They are all entering the plane. We just landed. All the Delhi Police officers are standing in the aisle. They are trying to arrest us from inside the plane. The entire Delhi Police is getting on the plane...This is the fear of Narendra Modi... Not even Indira Gandhi did this during the Emergency. All we wanted to do is a peaceful protest, and they are picking us up from the flight like we are criminals."
The CJP had announced the demonstration to demand the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
"You can see where the nation is heading. They are here to arrest us directly from the flight. This is something not even Indira Gandhi had done. This is dictatorship, where the Delhi Police has entered the flight and is trying to arrest us. Come on, arrest us. We are here to be arrested. Come on, arrest us. We are here to be arrested... We are not afraid of you," Dipke said in the video.
The CJP also shared a video featuring its legal head, Ratna Singh, who claimed that police officers were detaining her as she attempted to leave her residence in her car.
In the video, Singh alleged that police personnel had visited her home in the morning and were informed that she was not present. She further claimed that when she asked them to produce an official notification authorising her detention, they were unable to show her any such document.
"They just said, 'We need to detain you, we have orders from above.' I don't know which 'above' the orders came from for them," she said.
Singh alleged that the officers repeatedly instructed her to step out of the car, saying they intended to detain her at her residence. According to her, they did not want to take her to another location and were preventing her from leaving the area.
"And I am not getting out of the car. They are not leaving this space, so I am in a way illegally detained on the road," she said.
The party also alleged that YouTuber Dhruv Rathee had been detained, accusing the government of targeting young people who question its actions.
"The Dictator is terrified of young people who question its wrongdoings and refuse to stay silent," the CJP said in a social media post.
Delhi Police said on Saturday that approximately 500 people who had arrived in different groups from various locations had been detained ahead of the planned protest in the national capital.
"Around 500 people coming in different groups from various locations have been detained. In addition, nearly 50 anti-social elements with criminal antecedents have been picked up so that they do not disturb the atmosphere or incite trouble," the police said.
As part of the security arrangements, the New Delhi district has been divided into 20 operational zones, with separate detention centres established for each zone, according to the police.
Several demonstrators were detained after assembling at Jantar Mantar and Sansad Marg, as authorities imposed tight security and extensive barricading across the capital.
Security personnel have been deployed at multiple locations while CJP activists remain determined to proceed with their protest against the Election Commission. Entry points into the national capital have been placed under heightened security, and 46 Metro stations remain closed, according to the details provided.
The measures have been introduced to prevent any untoward incidents during the demonstration, with police aiming to avoid a repeat of the July 20 protests.
