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Swatantra Bhardwaj was remanded to one day of police custody after being produced before the concerned judge at the Karkardooma Court complex in New Delhi on Saturday.
Bhardwaj was detained by the Delhi Police on Friday from Bulandshahr in Uttar Pradesh, months after he allegedly assaulted Sanjay Kumar, the father of student activist Nishu Azad, during a protest organised by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) at Delhi's Jantar Mantar in July. The development came amid a controversy over an alleged assault during the demonstration and a purported video clip that subsequently went viral on social media. Delhi Police has also registered a fresh FIR against Bhardwaj under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act following a complaint in which the victim is a minor, according to police. The Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act has also been added to the earlier FIR registered in connection with the case. The controversy erupted after a purported clip went viral in which Bhardwaj was heard claiming to have "cracked the skull" of Kumar during the demonstration but did not go to jail due to political connections. Bhardwaj later claimed he had not attacked Kumar but had acted in "self-defence" after being surrounded by a group of protesters. Following the circulation of the video, the CJP intensified its demand for Bhardwaj's arrest, with activists staging protests outside the Parliament Street police station on Friday. The alleged assault took place during a protest at Jantar Mantar organised by the CJP in July. The incident later drew political reactions after Bhardwaj was accused of assaulting Kumar during the demonstration. On Friday, the Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) said that Bhardwaj had falsely invoked the name of Union Minister and party president Chirag Paswan to claim political protection, while maintaining that the party had no connection with the matter. The party had sought registration of an FIR against Bhardwaj and requested the police to place on record that LJP (Ram Vilas) had no connection with the matter. It also urged the police to take strict action against him.(ANI)
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