Influencer Swatantra Bhardwaj Sent to One‑Day Judicial Custody Over Alleged Assault on CJP Protester’s Father

On Sunday, a Delhi court ordered that self‑described "influencer" Swatantra Bhardwaj spend a single day in judicial custody. The decision stems from an alleged assault on the father of a Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) protester during the July 20 demonstration at Jantar Mantar.

Bhardwaj appeared before the duty magistrate via video‑conference and was immediately remanded. He had been arrested earlier that week in Bulandshahr, Uttar Pradesh, after CJP supporters gathered outside the Parliament Street police station demanding his detention.

The whole episode erupted after a snippet of Bhardwaj’s podcast went viral. In the clip, he openly claimed to have "cracked the skull" of Nishu Azad’s father, a statement that quickly drew public fury. Later, Bhardwaj tried to backtrack, insisting his words were sarcastic, that the video was heavily edited, and that he acted in self‑defence when a crowd allegedly surrounded him.

During the protest, which was aimed at exposing alleged leaks in the NEET‑UG exam papers, a scuffle broke out. Sanjay Kumar, Nishu’s father, was struck on the head and required medical attention, including stitches, before being taken away in an ambulance. His daughter, visibly upset, warned outside the police station that she would consider suicide if justice was not served.

The legal angle has since thickened. While the initial FIR listed simple hurt and wrongful restraint under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Delhi Police later added sections of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, criminal intimidation, and even the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act. Bhardwaj’s counsel noted that the added provisions required his appearance before a different judge.

In the aftermath, a few political figures tried to distance themselves from the controversy. Lok Janshakti Party (Ram Vilas) leader Chirag Paswan publicly stated that Bhardwaj had misused his name and that he had lodged a complaint seeking an impartial probe.

For now, Bhardwaj remains under judicial custody for one day, after which he will be released pending further investigation. The case continues to draw attention both for its political overtones and the unusual combination of charges, ranging from assault to alleged offenses under the SC/ST and POCSO Acts.