New Delhi:
The Dalit activist whose father was assaulted during the Cockroach Janta Party’s protest in June described the detention of the accused, Swatantra Bhardwaj, as a victory and vowed to continue her fight to bring him to justice. While praising politicians who supported her, she urged all parties not to politicise the case.
Bhardwaj, a far-right activist, had gloated on a podcast that he had faced no legal action despite “cracking the skull” of the activist’s father. He also named several politicians, including MP Chirag Paswan and Delhi MLA Kapil Mishra, claiming they were like his elder brothers. He was detained within three days.
“And I am very happy to know that we gave them (the police) 72 hours (to arrest him), but within two and a half hours, they detained him, and this is a step towards victory, and I hope that we will soon be able to get proper action taken against him,” she told NDTV Executive Editor Ankit Tyagi.
She noted that despite having already filed a complaint, the police initially reacted as if nothing had happened.
“At least they listened to us now, and they are doing their job,” she added.
She also lauded Chirag Paswan for distancing himself from the accused.
“I feel that they did not help the accused. Even if they did, they would not help him now. This topic has gone so viral…Bhardwaj has committed a crime, and he will be punished for it,” she said.
She said she doesn’t want the case to become a political issue.
“I want my father to be given justice. I want Bhardwaj to be punished for his crime. I will take the help of the people who support me. I hope that people do not make this a political issue,” she said.
“We have trust in the police. They have assured us that all the charges against him will be filed within 7 days. He will be punished. He will be sent to jail,” she said.
Bhardwaj was detained on Friday hours after the Cockroach Janta Party staged a protest outside the Parliament Street police station. They were accompanied by Azad Samaj Party (Kanshi Ram) chief and Nagina MP Chandrashekhar Azad and MP Pappu Yadav.
What Bhardwaj Said On The Podcast
Bhardwaj called himself a “kattar” Hindu on the podcast.
“I cracked the skull of her father. Do you know which section this crime attracts? Section 307. He needed 60 stitches. The man was being taken away in an ambulance in serious condition. His daughter was standing outside the police station and saying that she would die by suicide if her father didn’t get justice. But I was not even jailed. The world should know this. I was out and about through the night,” he said.
