Guwahati, Sep 27: The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) on Sunday alleged that its co‑convener Ashutosh Ranka and a contingent of party volunteers were detained by Assam Police in Guwahati without being informed of any charges or grounds for their removal, sparking a heated political dispute near the state secretariat.
Allegations of preventive detention ahead of volunteers' meet
CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke said Ranka and between 30 and 41 volunteers were taken into custody after the co‑convener, who had arrived in the city a day earlier, planned to meet supporters at a private residence in the Dispur area and later at a venue near the state secretariat.
Dipke said that Ranka and his team were prevented from holding the meeting, and that they were detained from a private house. He warned that if those detained were not released, he would travel to Assam with more party members and “dared” the Chief Minister to arrest them all, according to social media posts cited by the party.
“Ashu was picked up by the Assam Police from a private residence. They have still not been told under what charges or on what grounds he has been detained. If Ashu is not released, I will go to Assam along with other CJP members. (CM) Himanta can arrest us all,”
Ranka posted a video on his X (formerly Twitter) account that showed him sitting in a moving vehicle with police personnel. In the recording he was heard accusing Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma of being “afraid” of the party and of attempts to “expose” the state’s institutions. In the video, Ranka alleged the government was worried the CJP would reveal issues related to schools, Kaziranga National Park and what he described as “man‑made floods”.
Event disrupted, venue permission withdrawn
The CJP said the volunteers' meeting was first to be held at the Assam Shree Parshuram Seva Sadan in Athgaon where over 500 volunteers from across Assam and the Northeast were expected. The party claimed that venue management, under what it called intense state pressure, withdrew permission and forced a relocation to Chowdhury Tila opposite the Assam secretariat. The CJP further alleged police barricaded roads to the new venue and began detaining members.
- Detention claim: CJP says Ashutosh Ranka and between 30–41 volunteers detained.
- Locations involved: Private residence in Dispur; planned meet at Athgaon (later shifted to Chowdhury Tila).
- Party demands: Immediate release and an official explanation from Assam Police.
Discrepancies in reported numbers
Different accounts from CJP statements and social posts indicate varying tallies of those detained. The party's national and regional spokespeople provided figures ranging from around 30 to as many as 41 people.
| Source / Claim | Number reported |
|---|---|
| CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke (social posts) | 40 (claimed) |
| NCP (SP) spokesperson at press conference | 41 (claimed) |
| Other CJP statements and messages | At least 30 (claimed) |
Attempts to obtain an official response from Assam Police were not recorded in CJP messages cited in the party's posts. ThePrint and PTI items carrying the party’s claims noted that police spokesmen had not issued a statement at the time of reporting.
Political context and possible implications
The tussle comes amid heightened political activity in Assam and the broader Northeast, where new and fringe political outfits have sought to draw attention to issues such as land, conservation policies around Kaziranga, education and flood management. The CJP has framed its mobilisation as an effort to “expose” alleged administrative failures and corporate interests; state authorities, however, have not provided any publicly recorded justification for the detentions cited by the party.
Civil liberties groups generally view preventive detentions and restrictions on assembly as matters requiring clear public explanation and legal grounding. In the absence of a police statement, the legal status of the detentions and whether formal charges have been registered remain unclear.
Immediate demands and next steps
At a press conference following the detentions, party representatives demanded an immediate public explanation from Assam Police and called for the release of the detained members. CJP leaders warned of further mobilisation and said they would escalate their presence in the state if detentions continued.
As this is a developing political confrontation involving claims of detention and restrictions on assembly, further reporting is likely once police or administration officials comment or when formal records of arrest or remand, if any, are produced. The variations in the number of detainees and the lack of an official account underscore the need for clear public information from law enforcement authorities.
— Assam correspondent
