{
  "id": 6145090,
  "title": "Who is Swatantra Bhardwaj? 'Sanatani Yodha' at centre of Jantar Mantar assault has sizeable social media presence",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/07/who-is-swatantra-bhardwaj-sanatani-yodha-at-centre-of-jantar-mantar",
  "topic": "finance",
  "section": "Finance & Markets",
  "published": "2026-09-07T13:32:09.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Live Mint",
    "slug": "live-mint",
    "url": "https://www.livemint.com/news/india/who-is-swatantra-bhardwaj-sanatani-yodha-at-centre-of-jantar-mantar-assault-has-sizeable-social-media-presence-11788785821566.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Swatantra Bhardwaj, a self-proclaimed right-wing influencer and Sanatani warrior, has found himself at the center of a national political controversy following an assault on a protester at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar in June. The 21-year-old, who boasts a substantial social media presence, was remanded to judicial custody for 14 days after making offensive remarks on a podcast. Bhardwaj’s Instagram account, with approximately 1,84,000 followers, was deactivated following the incident. His X account, with over 6,400 followers, carries the bio: \"A Modern-Day Youngster Who Can't Tolerate Anything Against His DHARMA and RASHTRA.\" His Facebook page, with around 3,27,000 followers, is filled with posts promoting Hindutva, cow protection, criticism of Muslims, and attacks on government critics. The page also features photographs suggesting Bhardwaj's association with political leaders and official events. Just before his detention, Bhardwaj shared a screenshot of his name trending on X and an Instagram post of a kada on his wrist, which appears to reference a specific incident. Despite admitting to the attack in a podcast, Bhardwaj escaped jail. The victim's father, Sanjay Azad, demanded justice, and Union minister for food processing industries, Chirag Paswan, filed a complaint against Bhardwaj, calling for action to be taken against him.",
  "summary": "Several videos posted on Bhardwaj’s Instagram profile show him carrying a lathi (stick) while issuing warnings to CJP protesters involved in the Jantar Mantar agitation.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}