Hindutva influencer Swatantra Bhardwaj detained in Uttar Pradesh over alleged assault

Bulandshahr: Hindutva influencer was detained in Uttar Pradesh’s Bulandshahr on Friday, hours after Delhi Police assured protesters that he would be arrested within 72 hours over an alleged assault on the father of a student activist in July, officials said.

Several police teams had been deployed to trace Bhardwaj, who describes himself as a “kattar Hindu”.

A video clip from an interview in which Bhardwaj allegedly claimed to have attacked Sanjay Kumar, the father of student activist Nishu Azad, during a protest in Delhi on July 20 had recently gone viral.

According to officials, Bhardwaj had allegedly fled Naithla village on a Bullet motorcycle towards Khurja before a police team arrived to apprehend him. He was reportedly wearing a helmet, apparently to conceal his identity.

The Cockroach Janta Party staged a protest outside the Parliament Street police station in Delhi on Friday, demanding action against Bhardwaj.

Police are conducting further inquiries into the alleged assault and the circumstances surrounding his detention.