Swatantra Bharadwaj flees Bulandshahr hours after Delhi Police assures CJP of arrest

Swatantra Bharadwaj, accused of assaulting the father of student activist Nishu Azad during the Jantar Mantar protest, allegedly fled from Bulandshahr hours after Delhi Police assured the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) that he would be arrested within 72 hours, police sources said on Friday.

Bharadwaj allegedly left Naithla village on a Bullet motorcycle and headed towards Khurja, wearing a helmet to conceal his identity, the sources said.

Several police teams in plain clothes were deployed to trace him. During the search, police also questioned local journalists as they tried to establish Bharadwaj's whereabouts.

Efforts are underway to locate and apprehend him, the sources said.

Bharadwaj, who describes himself as a “kattar Hindu”, came under scrutiny after a video clip from an interview circulated widely on social media. In the video, he is heard claiming that he had “cracked the skull” of Nishu Azad's father during the Jantar Mantar protest.

The CJP had staged a protest outside the Parliament Street police station on Friday, demanding Bharadwaj's arrest and stronger action in the case.

CJP representatives, including co-conveners Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, had met police officials along with supporters and MPs Chandrashekhar Azad and Pappu Yadav.

The protesters were told that Bharadwaj would be arrested within 72 hours.

The development comes amid a dispute over the severity of injuries suffered by Sanjay Kumar during the July 20 protest. Delhi Police has maintained that Kumar suffered a minor head injury during a scuffle and has rejected claims that his skull was fractured.

Police had earlier said Bharadwaj and another accused, Suraj Kumar, were detained at the spot, questioned and served notices.

Further efforts are underway to trace Bharadwaj and establish the circumstances surrounding his alleged role in the incident.