Arvind Kejriwal detention during a protest march towards Jantar Mantar on Saturday has intensified a political confrontation in Delhi, with the Aam Aadmi Party alleging police action against the former chief minister and other leaders. Kejriwal was reportedly taken into custody after setting out to join the demonstration, while AAP Rajya Sabha member Sanjay Singh was also detained, according to Live Hindustan – NCR.
The reported action took place as opposition leaders sought to protest in Delhi and demand the resignation of Gyanesh Kumar. The source did not specify the legal provisions used for the detentions, the police unit involved, the duration of custody or whether the leaders were later released. It also did not provide an independent police statement on the action.
After being detained, Kejriwal reposted an 11-year-old post from 2015 on social media and wrote that he had made the point at that time. The old post, which had previously triggered controversy, used derogatory terms against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The latest repost brought that earlier confrontation back into the political campaign surrounding Saturday’s protest.
Speaking to the media after his detention, Kejriwal called on young people to leave their homes and travel towards Delhi. He urged those who received his message to join the mobilisation and said that if police stopped them, they should turn the location into a Jantar Mantar. His appeal was reported by the source as a call for wider public participation in the protest.
AAP leader Atishi alleged on social media that Delhi Police had detained Kejriwal after he demanded the resignation of Gyanesh Kumar. She questioned how many people the central government would imprison to protect Kumar. These were political allegations by an AAP leader, and the report did not include a response from Delhi Police or the central government.
The episode places Jantar Mantar and other protest spaces at the centre of a continuing dispute over how political demonstrations are managed in the national capital. Jantar Mantar is an established site for public protests, but access to demonstrations can also involve police permissions, crowd-control measures and restrictions on movement. The supplied report does not establish whether the Saturday gathering had formal permission or whether the detentions were linked to a specific order.
Earlier on Saturday, Kejriwal had criticised the central government and described the situation as worse than the Emergency. The report also said he commented on the detention of leaders earlier in the day, using the term “cockroaches” for politicians and alleging that the Prime Minister had shown fear by having them detained on an aircraft. Those remarks were political statements and were not independently verified in the supplied material.
The immediate next steps remain unclear. The report does not state whether Kejriwal or Sanjay Singh were formally arrested, where they were taken, whether charges were filed or whether the protest was allowed to proceed. Further information from Delhi Police, the protest organisers or a court would be required to establish the legal and operational details of the detentions.
