Actor Prakash Raj has criticised the police crackdown on Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) members, Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, after the two were sent to five days’ judicial custody for entering Delhi’s Jantar Mantar carrying the national flag on Tuesday. The actor warned the government of consequences.
Prakash Raj reacts
Prakash Raj shared a video on X, the 61-year-old questioning the government’s decision to denotify Jantar Mantar as a protest site. Notably, the actor was seen joining the CJP protest in Bengaluru earlier.
The actor even called out the restrictions at Delhi’s long-standing protest site, warning that such shutdowns would not silence dissent. “Protest ka site badal sakte hain aap, rok sakte hain, lekin is desh ki awaaz ko aap nahi rok sakte hain. Pura desh Jantar Mantar banega [You can change the protest site, you can stop a protest, but you cannot silence the voice of this country. The entire country will become Jantar Mantar],” he said.
Fraaand .. five days of judicial custody for protesting with the National Flag 😂😂😂 how desperate you are #justasking https://t.co/Ho6JAWk6BT
— Prakash Raj (@prakashraaj) October 14, 2026
In the video, Raj further questioned the decision to detain CJP members for trying to enter Jantar Mantar with the national flag. “Why are you so desperate? You have sent gundas into Delhi. They are beating up the protestors. They are misbehaving with the female protestors. They are pushing the breasts. Unke liye kuch detention, police cases nahi hai?,” he asked the government.
“Not fair,” he added, questioning why Jantar Mantar was removed from the list of designated protest sites. He also raised concerns regarding the cost of holding protests at Ramlila Maidan, the newly designated protest venue by the government. He claimed that the venue had limited availability and required a fee of Rs 50,000 along with a refundable deposit of the same amount. He questioned why citizens should have to pay.
“Not fair. So you’ve removed Jantar Mantar and you are giving us Ramleela Maidaan – which has only two days free in this whole year. And we have to pay Rs 50,000 for it, plus a Rs 50,000 deposit. Is desh me sawaal puchne ke liye bhi paisa dena padta hai. Why don’t you shift it to the Andaman & Nicobar islands, or some desert or to the top of the Himalayas? Bolo na vahan ja ke protest karo,” he said.
“Is desh mein sawaal puchne ke liye bhi paisa dena padta hai [We have to spend money even to ask questions in this country],” the actor said, before concluding the message with a warning that restrictions would not end public dissent.
Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka arrested
Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka were placed under preventive arrest for trespassing at Jantar Mantar on Tuesday. They have now been sent to five-day judicial custody. The two, along with Ajinkya Shinde, have been booked on charges including bond violation and disruption of a public official’s duty.
They were produced before a magistrate at Mandir Marg in Delhi around 8:00 am on Wednesday morning.