CJP leaders withdraw High Court plea against judicial custody

Cockroach Janta Party leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka on Wednesday withdrew their petition in the Delhi High Court that challenged their judicial custody ordered by a Special Executive Magistrate. The high court had earlier agreed to hear the matter urgently, even though the court is shut this week due to the Dussehra vacation. The two co-convenors will decide on their next steps after another hearing before the Special Executive Magistrate court on Wednesday. Mr. Das and Mr. Ranka were taken into custody on October 13 after they allegedly climbed over a locked gate to enter Jantar Mantar. The site had earlier been de-notified as a designated protest site. Along with other party workers, they displayed the national flag at the location and shouted slogans against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar before being detained and placed under preventive arrest. According to Delhi Police, the protesters trespassed through private premises and stopped police personnel from doing their official work. They were first sent to judicial custody for five days on October 14. A newly-appointed Special Executive Magistrate at the Mandir Marg police station later ordered their judicial remand till October 21 after they were produced before him on October 19. The party has alleged that bail proceedings were deliberately delayed to keep the two co-convenors from being released.

Context

Special Executive Magistrates in Delhi and other parts of India have powers under legal provisions like the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita to handle matters related to maintaining public peace and order. Jantar Mantar has long served as a prominent venue for public demonstrations in the national capital before administrative restrictions were applied to it. Legal challenges involving preventive detention and police custody often require urgent hearings in higher courts when petitioners dispute the validity of lower magistrate orders.