Delhi Police Register Case Over Threat to Magistrate During CJP Leaders’ Bail Hearing

A dispute over the release of two Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) leaders has taken a new turn in Delhi. Police say a magistrate handling the bail proceedings of Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka received threats. A case was registered against unidentified people following the alleged threats.

At the same time, CJP has accused the authorities of delaying the leaders’ release. The party says its legal team completed the required formalities but faced repeated objections over the bail sureties. Delhi Police have rejected the allegation, saying they must follow the legal procedure and cannot accept incorrect bail bonds.

The key questions are straightforward: What is the alleged threat about? Why has the bail process been delayed? And what do the police and CJP say about each other’s claims?

What happened to Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka?

Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka are co-convenors of the Cockroach Janata Party. They were taken into custody after a protest at Jantar Mantar in Delhi, where the party members allegedly entered the area despite it no longer being a designated protest site.

The two leaders were sent to five days of judicial custody on October 14. The police cited alleged violations of legal undertakings and concerns about public order. CJP, however, has challenged the action and accused the authorities of unfairly targeting its members. These are competing claims, and the allegations should not be treated as proven findings.

Why did the magistrate’s alleged threat become an issue?

During the bail proceedings on Sunday, October 18, the Special Executive Magistrate (SEM) reportedly said that he had received threatening messages. The incident led to police action against unidentified people.

According to reports, the alleged threats became a major issue during the hearing, and the proceedings were delayed. The details of the messages, who sent them and what exactly they said had not been publicly established in the reports available at the time.

The matter is important because threats against a public official need to be investigated. At the same time, any such allegation should be examined on evidence, and the bail process should follow the law.

What did CJP’s legal head Ratna Singh allege?

Ratna Singh, CJP’s head of legal affairs, alleged that the bail process was being delayed unnecessarily. She said her team had been present at the police station from around 11 am, ahead of a hearing scheduled for noon.

According to her account, the Assistant Commissioner of Police, who was also functioning as the Special Executive Magistrate, had not arrived by 4:42 pm. Singh said the magistrate later told them that he was being threatened, after which the hearing focused heavily on the alleged messages.

She also claimed that four bail sureties submitted in connection with the leaders’ release had been rejected on unclear grounds. CJP argued that the officials should deal with the alleged threats separately instead of allowing the bail proceedings to remain delayed. These statements reflect the party’s account of events and have not, by themselves, established wrongdoing by the authorities.

What is the Delhi Police’s response?

Delhi Police have denied deliberately delaying the release of the two leaders. According to a senior police officer quoted in media reports, the surety bonds submitted by the CJP team contained errors and could not be accepted as they were.

The police also said the SEM had reported receiving threatening messages and expressed concern about continuing the proceedings under those circumstances. Officials said the alleged threats were being examined and maintained that the authorities had to follow the prescribed procedure.

What is an NCR, and how is it different from an FIR?

An NCR stands for Non-Cognisable Report. It relates to a non-cognisable offence, for which police generally cannot investigate without an order from a magistrate. Police also generally cannot arrest a person without a warrant for such an offence, subject to the applicable law.

An FIR, or First Information Report, is ordinarily registered when information discloses a cognisable offence. It allows the police to begin an investigation under the relevant legal provisions without first obtaining a magistrate’s permission.

There is a reporting difference worth noting here: a PTI report published by ThePrint described the action as an NCR, while other reports, including Hindustan Times, described it as an FIR. The precise legal classification and sections invoked should therefore be confirmed from the police record before being stated definitively.

Why does this matter?

A bail hearing is meant to consider the legal requirements for release, including whether the necessary documents and sureties are valid. If paperwork is incomplete or incorrect, authorities can require it to be corrected. But the reasons for rejecting documents should be clear, and proceedings should move forward without avoidable delay.

The alleged threat also raises a separate concern. Public officials must be able to carry out their duties without intimidation. If a threat was made, it should be investigated fairly, with evidence used to identify those responsible.

For now, two things remain distinct: the police have reported an alleged threat to the magistrate, while CJP has accused the authorities of delaying the release of its leaders. The available reports do not independently establish that the police deliberately obstructed the process, nor do they identify who allegedly threatened the magistrate.

The next important details are the official record of the threat complaint, the reasons given for rejecting the surety bonds and the decision on the leaders’ release.

In simple terms, the disagreement is over two separate issues: whether the bail documents were legally acceptable and whether the alleged threats justified delaying the hearing. The police say procedure and the magistrate’s safety had to be considered. CJP says the objections and delays prevented its leaders from being released.