New Delhi: Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke has accused Delhi Police of releasing an edited video showing the moment he was informed about his grandmother’s death while in custody. He has challenged the police to release the complete footage, claiming it would show him repeatedly requesting access to his phone, cousin and lawyer.
The allegation came a day after Delhi Police released a video showing an officer offering to arrange travel for Dipke following news of his grandmother’s death. The police released the clip on Sunday, October 11, in response to questions about whether the CJP founder had been informed of the death while detained.
Speaking to reporters in Maharashtra’s Hingoli, Dipke questioned why the police had not made the entire recording public. He alleged that the released clip did not show his requests to contact family members and his lawyer.
The dispute has brought renewed attention to the circumstances surrounding the detention of Dipke and two fellow CJP functionaries ahead of their proposed protest in Delhi.
Dipke challenges police to release full video
Dipke said the police should publish the complete recording rather than a selected portion showing the conversation about his grandmother.
“Delhi Police, if you have the courage, release the entire video in which I repeatedly asked them to let me speak to my cousin, give me my phone for two minutes and allow me to speak to my lawyer,” he said, according to news agency PTI.
He also questioned why he had not been allowed to contact his cousin, who lived with his grandmother.
“Why are you not releasing that video? You are showing an edited version. If you have the courage, show the entire video so that people can understand how you denied me my basic rights,” Dipke was quoted as saying.
He further argued that allowing a person to contact a lawyer after arrest or detention was a legal right.
Dipke’s allegation concerns the completeness of the footage released by the police. The available account does not independently establish whether the clip was edited in a way that omitted his alleged requests or whether the police have released the entire recording.
What does the Delhi Police video show?
Delhi Police played the video during a press conference on Sunday, October 11.
In the footage described in reports, Dipke is seated inside a room while a woman in police uniform and a man in plain clothes speak to him. At one point, Dipke covers his face with his hands, and the man offers him water.
The policewoman expresses condolences over the death of Dipke’s grandmother.
The male officer then asks whether Dipke wants to return home, offering to arrange travel by bus or flight. Dipke declines the offer and says, “I will stay.”
The police released the video amid allegations that Dipke had not been informed about the death while in custody. The footage was presented as evidence that officers had conveyed the news and offered assistance with his return home.
Dipke, however, has disputed the presentation of the incident and says the complete video should be made public to establish what happened during the interaction.
The central point of disagreement is therefore not only whether he was informed of the death, but also what took place before and after the exchange shown in the released clip.
Dipke says he was asked to call his parents at 3.30 am
Dipke’s grandmother, who had reportedly been ill for a long time, died in Hingoli at around 11.30 am on Saturday, October 10.
The death occurred shortly after Dipke and fellow CJP functionaries Ashutosh Ranka and Saurav Das were detained from inside an Air India aircraft after it arrived in Delhi.
Dipke has also made a separate claim about the treatment he received while in custody. He said he was asked to call his parents at around 3.30 am on Sunday and tell them that he would be going to jail the following day for a long time.
His account adds another dimension to the dispute over the period of detention. However, the available report does not provide an independent account of that alleged conversation or explain the circumstances in which he was asked to contact his parents.
The police video released on Sunday addressed the interaction in which Dipke was told about his grandmother’s death and offered help with travel. Dipke’s demand for the full recording suggests that he wants the wider sequence of events to be made public.
CJP leaders detained ahead of proposed protest
Dipke, Ranka and Das were detained ahead of a proposed protest against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar.
The Cockroach Janta Party had called for an agitation demanding Kumar’s resignation over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
The trio were subsequently placed under preventive arrest. They were released on Sunday morning after being produced before an executive magistrate.
According to CJP legal affairs head Ratna Singh, their release came with a condition that they would not “breach peace” for one year.
Preventive action is intended to prevent an anticipated breach of peace, rather than necessarily following a conviction for a criminal offence. The specific circumstances and legal basis of the action in this case remain part of the broader dispute surrounding the proposed protest.
The detention of the CJP functionaries also raised questions about the circumstances in which they were taken into custody after arriving in Delhi.
Dispute shifts to transparency over detention
The release of the video by Delhi Police and Dipke’s subsequent response have placed the focus on the transparency of the account provided by both sides.
The police clip shows an officer expressing condolences and offering to arrange travel. Dipke has not accepted that the released footage provides a complete account of the interaction and has alleged that his requests to contact his cousin, use his phone and speak to his lawyer were left out.
The full recording would be relevant to assessing the sequence of events described by Dipke, although its contents would need to be examined before drawing conclusions about what occurred.
At present, the competing accounts remain unresolved in the information available publicly. The police video documents the portion of the interaction that was released, while Dipke’s demand concerns the portions he says have not been shown.
Questions remain over the complete footage
Dipke’s challenge has made the release of the full recording a central issue in the dispute.
His grandmother’s death, the circumstances of his detention and the police’s subsequent video release have become intertwined in the public discussion. The CJP founder maintains that the complete footage would show his attempts to contact family members and his lawyer.
Delhi Police released the clip to address allegations that he had not been informed of the death. However, the available report does not establish whether the police have responded to his demand for the entire recording.
The episode also comes amid a wider disagreement over the proposed CJP protest against the Chief Election Commissioner and the party’s allegations concerning electoral-roll revision.
For now, the key question remains whether the complete footage will be released and whether it will clarify the competing accounts of Dipke’s time in custody.