Delhi Police detained self-claimed ‘Hindutva influencer’ Swatantra Bhardwaj in Bulandshahr, Uttar Pradesh, on Friday over the assault on the father of a student protester during a demonstration at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar, local media reported.
The detention came hours after members of the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP), along with political leaders, protested outside the Parliament Street police station demanding action against Bhardwaj. Earlier, the police had assured the protesters that action would be taken within 72 hours.
Bhardwaj is accused of hitting Sanjay Kumar, the father of student activist Nishu Azad, during a protest in July. The case has been examined again after a podcast that went viral in which Bhardwaj seemed to boast about the incident.
Bhardwaj denied any premeditated attack on Kumar, saying he was acting in self-defence after being set upon by a crowd.
“I did not attack him deliberately. I was scared that I might be mob-lynched, so I acted in self-defence,” Bhardwaj said.
Delhi Police later added provisions under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and criminal intimidation provisions to the case, reports said.
