Delhi Court Deliberates on Bail for Hindutva Influencer Swatantra Bhardwaj Amid Controversy

Court Proceedings and Allegations

New Delhi: A Delhi court has postponed its decision regarding the bail application of Hindutva figure Swatantra Bhardwaj, who is implicated in an alleged assault on a student activist's father during a protest at Jantar Mantar, among other accusations. The court's ruling is now set for September 15.

During the hearing, Bhardwaj's lawyer argued that his client was detained following "certain political events" and claimed that the complainant had actually attacked Bhardwaj during the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) protest in June.

Bhardwaj was placed in judicial custody for 14 days starting September 7.

On Monday, Additional Sessions Judge Saurabh Pratap Singh Laler inquired whether Bhardwaj had used a casteist slur during the incident. The police responded that the initial complaint did not mention such a slur, but it was included in a later statement, leading to the invocation of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.

Bhardwaj's counsel noted that an FIR was filed against him on June 23, followed by a notice on June 27 for questioning.

"I attended the questioning on June 29 and was released afterward. However, I was arrested on September 4 due to political developments, and a new FIR under the POCSO Act was filed post-arrest," the lawyer stated.

"Interestingly, during the CJP protest, the complainant attacked me, as evidenced by a video circulating on social media. In that footage, it is clear that I fell and was rescued by the police," Bhardwaj's attorney added.

The court then reviewed the video clip presented.

The complainant's lawyer contended that the arrest was lawful and that multiple FIRs, including those under the SC/ST Act and the POCSO Act, had been filed against Bhardwaj.

Following this, Judge Laler announced that the proceedings would be conducted in-camera, instructing media representatives to exit the courtroom.

Subsequently, court staff indicated that the order had been reserved and would be delivered on Tuesday.

Bhardwaj was apprehended in Bulandshahr on September 4, shortly after the CJP protested outside the Parliament Street police station, demanding his arrest for the alleged assault.

This action was prompted by public outrage over an interview in which Bhardwaj claimed to have "cracked the skull" of the student activist's father during the June 23 protest, asserting he evaded arrest due to his political ties.

The following day, Bhardwaj was presented before Judge Laler, who granted the Delhi Police's request for a one-day custodial interrogation.

The next day, a magisterial court ordered Bhardwaj to one-day judicial custody.

Judge Laler extended Bhardwaj's judicial custody until September 21.