‘Repeatedly Asked Him’: Delhi Police Release Video of CJP Leader Dipke Refusing to Return Home After Grandmother’s Death

New Delhi: Delhi Police on Sunday released a video showing Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke being informed about his grandmother's death while in detention, countering allegations by his family and party that he was not informed in time and was prevented from attending her funeral.

The police said they had conveyed the news to Dipke with due sensitivity and offered to help him contact his family and arrange travel to his hometown in Maharashtra. The video was released amid a controversy over the circumstances surrounding his detention and the family's allegations that authorities failed to facilitate his return for the last rites.

According to Delhi Police, officers repeatedly asked Dipke whether he wanted to speak to his parents and offered assistance in travelling home. In the video, a police officer can be heard asking him whether he wished to travel by plane, train, bus or another mode of transport. An officer also offered to help him speak to his father, to which Dipke responded that he would not be able to speak to him at that point.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (PRO) Neha Yadav said the police had informed Dipke about his grandmother's death and the scheduled funeral timings.

She maintained that officers offered all possible assistance to facilitate his travel on humanitarian grounds, but he declined the offer.

The police release was aimed at countering claims made by Dipke's family and the CJP regarding the handling of the matter during his detention.

Family Accuses Police Of Preventing Dipke From Attending Funeral

Dipke's mother, Anita Dipke, had accused Delhi Police of lying about informing her son of his grandmother's death. She said the family had been unable to contact him and alleged that repeated requests to allow him to return home had not been addressed.

The family had also indicated that the last rites were being delayed in the hope that Dipke would be able to reach home. His grandmother, Savitribai Shankarrao Dipke, 85, died in Maharashtra's Hingoli district on Saturday after a prolonged illness. Her last rites were held on Sunday morning.

The CJP also questioned the police's account of the events. During a press conference, party leader Ashutosh Ranka alleged that Dipke was informed of the death in an inhumane manner, with a microphone and camera present. He further claimed that Dipke repeatedly sought permission to call his cousin because his parents were heart patients, but was not allowed to do so.

The police video and the family's allegations present conflicting accounts of the communication and assistance offered to Dipke while he was in custody.

Police Cite Previous Protest Violations

Delhi Police also defended its decision to deny permission for the CJP's proposed protest at Jantar Mantar against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. Yadav said the party had violated conditions attached to an earlier protest permission and had failed to comply with previous undertakings and directives. Police also cited procedural requirements and the prevailing security and law-and-order situation.

Dipke, along with CJP co-conveners Ashutosh Ranka and Saurav Das, was detained from inside an aircraft shortly after it landed at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport on Saturday, October 10. The leaders had arrived from Mumbai ahead of the planned demonstration demanding Kumar's resignation over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

The three were subsequently placed under preventive arrest under Sections 126 and 170 of the BNSS. They were released on Sunday after being produced before a Special Executive Magistrate court in Delhi Cantonment. A surety bond of Rs 50,000 was furnished, with the leaders required to maintain peace and good behaviour for one year.

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