Two key leaders of the fringe political initiative ‘Cockroach Janata Party’ (CJP)—Saurabh Das and Ashutosh Ranka—have been ordered released after spending seven days in judicial custody. A Special Executive Magistrate court in New Delhi granted their bail and release order, as confirmed in a report published by Indian news outlet NDTV on Wednesday (October 21, 2026).
CJP spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka and leader Saurabh Das had been incarcerated since October 14 following their arrest for unlawfully entering New Delhi’s historic Jantar Mantar—a location delisted from approved protest venues—and hoisting the Indian national flag.
On October 13, defying designated security restrictions, Das and Ranka scaled the locked gates of Jantar Mantar to gain entry and hoisted the Indian national flag as part of a pre-announced political demonstration.
State prosecutors presented evidence in court showing that both leaders had previously signed a peace bond following an earlier detention on October 10 during another demonstration. Hoisting the flag inside Jantar Mantar constituted a direct breach of that signed undertaking.
Upon their arrest on October 14, the duo was produced before the Special Executive Magistrate, who remanded them to five days of judicial custody. On Monday (October 19), the magistrate extended their judicial remand by an additional two days.
Following the completion of the extended seven-day custody period and formal legal hearings, the Special Executive Magistrate issued final discharge orders on Wednesday.
