Dipke claimed that the outfit's leaders were prevented from holding the meeting. | PTI
‘Himanta can arrest us all’: CJP founder Dipke after leaders detained in Assam
CJP’s Ashutosh Ranka alleges Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma fears the party’s campaign will expose the condition of government schools in the state
A warning from Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke that “Himanta can arrest us all” has escalated a confrontation between the fledgling political outfit and the Assam government after several CJP leaders and volunteers were detained in Guwahati ahead of the party’s first regional volunteers’ meeting.
Dipke demanded the immediate release of CJP co-convenor Ashutosh Ranka, who was among those detained along with Ankit Bhardwaj, Prem Aakash and several local volunteers. The detentions came shortly before the meeting, which was scheduled near the Assam Secretariat and was expected to draw 200–300 people. Police had blocked access to the venue earlier in the day.
In a post on X (formerly Twitter), Dipke said Ranka had been picked up from a private residence without clear charges or grounds being provided. He warned that if Ranka was not released, he and other CJP members would travel to Assam themselves. “Himanta can arrest us all,” Dipke said.
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The detentions came shortly after CJP leaders met Akhil Gogoi-led Raijor Dal in Guwahati to discuss flood-related issues and the party’s plans to expand its presence in Assam.
Before his detention, Ranka alleged that Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma was targeting the CJP because of its campaign on school infrastructure. A video was shared on Ranka’s X account, showing him sitting in a moving vehicle with police and purportedly heard saying that CM Sarma has detained him and CJP volunteers as he was “afraid” of the people of Assam as the outfit wants to “expose” the reality of the state's schools.
Talking to reporters while being whisked away by police, Ranka said, “He is scared that if we show the schools here, the country will know the reality. He is afraid that people will know how their rights were being snatched in Kaziranga for the benefit of the corporates. But we are not afraid of him. We know that he won the Assembly election by redrawing boundaries of constituencies.”
(With agency inputs)