‘I was not arrested, I was kidnapped’: YouTuber Dhruv Rathee recounts 24-hour ordeal after police raid

On Saturday morning, 30 plainclothes policemen entered the home of YouTuber Dhruv Rathee in Sector 56, Gurgaon, as he refused to heed their warnings against attending an unauthorized protest. The protest, organized by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) to demand the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, lacked official permission and was taking place in violation of prohibitory orders issued due to alleged electoral roll irregularities at Jantar Mantar, Delhi.

Under Section 163 of the BNSS, the police detained Rathee, who was later transferred to the crime branch office in Sector 39 and held until late Saturday evening. Police explained that the preventive action aimed to avert any untoward incident, and such detentions can last up to 24 hours. After Rathee's arrest, several Congress and Aam Aadmi Party functionaries, along with members of other political groups, were also placed under house arrest to prevent them from proceeding to Jantar Mantar.