New Delhi: Several senior Left leaders attempted to march towards Jantar Mantar from Kerala House but were stopped by the police and taken into custody. They included former Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan, CPI(M) general secretary M.A. Baby, party leader Brinda Karat, Rajya Sabha MP John Brittas and former Kerala finance minister K.N. Balagopal.
“This is a murder of democracy,” Vijayan said after being detained.
He alleged that attempts were being made to deprive people of their right to elect their government. “This protest against Gyanesh Kumar will not end today,” he added.
CJP leaders and activists detained
Among those detained during the course of the day were CJP founder and convenor Abhijeet Dipke, co-convenors Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, and legal aid team head Ratna Singh.
YouTuber Dhruv Rathee was also detained from his residence in Gurugram. CJP legal team head Ratna Singh and content creator Kavya Karnatac were among others whose detention was reported.
Singh alleged that police officers had told her they had orders from above but could not produce an official notice when asked for one.
Prominent Opposition leaders taken into custody
The police action also swept up prominent Opposition leaders, including former West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee, Trinamool Congress MPs Derek O’Brien and Saket Gokhale, former Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal, and CPI(ML) Liberation general secretary Dipankar Bhattacharya.
Brinda Karat accused the government of being afraid of the people, while the CPI(M) Polit Bureau condemned the police action as “widespread repression”.
Mamata Banerjee and TMC leaders detained
Meanwhile, Banerjee and several senior TMC leaders and MPs, including O’Brien, Dola Sen and Gokhale, attempted to march towards Jantar Mantar from her residence on South Avenue. They were detained by the Delhi Police near the residence.
Banerjee wore a bandage across her mouth to symbolise what she described as the Opposition being forced into silence by the ruling dispensation.
O’Brien later posted a video on X from inside a police bus, alleging that Banerjee and five TMC MPs had been driven around for an hour in the vehicle, which he referred to as a “prison van”.
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Activists and student leaders also detained
Other prominent figures included psephologist and activist Yogendra Yadav, senior advocate Prashant Bhushan, development economist Jean Drèze, All India Students’ Association (AISA) president Neha Bora and student leader Aishe Ghosh.
