Hindutva-aligned social media influencer and self-proclaimed political activist Swatantra Bhardwaj was detained in Bulandshahr, Uttar Pradesh, on Friday, 4 September, hours after Delhi Police assured protesters that he would be arrested within 72 hours in connection with the alleged assault of the father of student activist Nishu Azad.
Bhardwaj, who describes himself as a ‘kattar (hardline) Hindu’, came under scrutiny after a clip from a podcast went viral in which he appeared to boast that he had “cracked the skull” of Sanjay Kumar during the Cockroach Janta Party-led protest at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar.
The incident took place during the protest organised by the CJP demanding the resignation of former Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan in July, with Bhardwaj subsequently facing allegations that he assaulted Kumar, who had accompanied his daughter Nishu to the demonstration.
Once his video went viral, Bhardwaj claimed that what he described as an attack was actually an act of self-defence, saying he had been surrounded by 10-15 people and feared he could be lynched. He also dismissed the viral podcast clip as fake and said his remarks about political connections — to Prime Minister Narendra Modi among others — were sarcastic.
Delhi Police, meanwhile, has disputed claims that Kumar suffered a fractured skull. The police said Kumar sustained a head injury during a scuffle and that a medical examination at RML Hospital found the injuries to be ‘simple in nature’.
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