A Delhi court on September 15, 2026, granted three weeks of interim bail to influencer Swatantra Bhardwaj in connection with an alleged assault at a protest by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) held at Jantar Mantar. Bhardwaj, accused of attacking the father of a Dalit student-activist during the June demonstration, had been under judicial custody since his arrest in Uttar Pradesh on September 5.
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## Charges and Allegations
Swatantra Bhardwaj is accused of assaulting the Dalit student’s father during the CJP protest. Initially booked under Sections 115(2) and 126(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), which cover simple hurt and wrongful restraint, the case later included charges under the SC/ST Act and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO).
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## Legal Arguments Presented in Court
### Defense Claims
Bhardwaj’s lawyer, Umesh Sharma, argued that Bhardwaj’s arrest was politically motivated. According to Sharma, Bhardwaj received a notice to appear for questioning on June 27 and did so on June 29—after which he was permitted to leave. After some political developments, however, Sharma said, Bhardwaj was arrested on September 4.
During the hearing, Sharma referenced a video showing the complainant attacking Bhardwaj: “It is clearly visible in this video that the complainant attacked me and I fell down,” he told the court. He also said that Bhardwaj was charged under the SC/ST Act not immediately, but after a casteist slur became part of a later statement.
### Complainant’s Position
Swati Khanna, representing the complainant, countered these claims, asserting that Bhardwaj used casteist slurs against the complainant. She further stated that Bhardwaj himself admitted in a video that he was the aggressor. Khanna also flagged that while the police’s original complaint lacked any mention of casteist language, these provisions were added afterward.
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## Bail Granted and Custody Details
On September 15, the court approved Bhardwaj’s request for three weeks’ interim bail. Prior to this, the Delhi Police had extended his judicial custody until September 21.
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## Background and Context
– **Protest incident**: The alleged assault took place during a public protest by the CJP at Jantar Mantar in June 2026.
– **Arrest timeline**: Bhardwaj was arrested in Uttar Pradesh on September 5, 2026, after appearing in response to early questioning in June.
– **Political angle**: He has publicly claimed that his political ties allowed him to evade immediate arrest, referencing alleged connections with NDA figures Kapil Mishra and Chirag Paswan. Paswan, however, denied these claims and filed his own complaint against Bhardwaj for allegedly misusing his name.
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## Legal Provisions Invoked
– Sections 115(2) and 126(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, addressing simple hurt and wrongful restraint.
– SC/ST Act, triggered after accusations of casteist insults.
– Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO), applied following a supplementary FIR.
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## What’s Next
Bhardwaj’s interim release will last three weeks; full proceedings to follow once bail period elapses. The court will also continue examining evidentiary issues, including video footage and whether certain caste-based insult allegations have merit. The rejection of his habeas corpus petition by the Delhi High Court remains part of the ongoing legal narrative.
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