Bail for Swatantra Bhardwaj, ‘influencer’ who beat CJP protester’s father - The Indian Express
Self-styled right wing influencer Swatantra Bhardwaj, who was arrested earlier this month, was granted a three-week interim bail by a Delhi court on Tuesday in the CJP protestor assault case.
Bhardwaj, who admitted to attacking the father of a student protester at Jantar Mantar in July, was arrested by Delhi Police in September.
Bhardwaj, who describes himself as a “kattar Hindu”, purportedly claimed in a widely circulated video podcast that he had cracked the skull of a protester at Jantar Mantar. He was referring to a scuffle in which the girl’s father, a resident of Ghaziabad, sustained a head injury.
In the video, Bharadwaj is purportedly seen and heard claiming that despite having attacked the father of a CJP protester, he had managed to stay out of jail due to the intervention of a politician.
He also purportedly boasts in the video that the person he had attacked had to be given 60 stitches and was on the verge of death – and that a case under Section 307 of the IPC, which relates to attempt to murder, should have been registered against him.
He was arrested shortly after Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) supporters, led by leader Saurav Das, marched to the Parliament Street police station, demanding an FIR against Bhardwaj under sections such as attempt to murder and the SC/ST act.
Nirbhay Thakur is a Senior Correspondent with The Indian Express who primarily covers district courts in Delhi and has reported on the trials of many high-profile cases since 2023. Professional Background Education: Nirbhay is an economics graduate from Delhi University. Beats: His reporting spans the trial courts, and he occasionally interviews ambassadors and has a keen interest in doing data stories. Specializations: He has a specific interest in data stories related to courts. Core Strength: Nirbhay is known for tracking long-running legal sagas and providing meticulous updates on high-profile criminal trials. Recent notable articles In 2025, he has written long form articles and two investigations. Along with breaking many court stories, he has also done various exclusive stories. 1) A long form on Surender Koli, accused in the Nithari serial killings of 2006. He was acquitted after spending 2 decades in jail. was a branded man. Deemed the “cannibal" who allegedly lured children to his employer’s house in Noida, murdered them, and “ate their flesh” – his actions cited were cited as evidence of human depravity at its worst. However, the SC acquitted him finding various lapses in the investigation. The Indian Express spoke to his lawyers and traced the 2 decades journey. 2) For decades, the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) has been at the forefront of the Government’s national rankings, placed at No. 2 over the past two years alone. It has also been the crucible of campus activism, its protests often spilling into national debates, its student leaders going on to become the faces and voices of political parties of all hues and thoughts. The Indian Express looked at all court cases spanning over two decades and did an investigation. 3) Investigation on the 700 Delhi riots cases. The Indian Express found that in 17 of 93 acquittals (which amounted to 85% of the decided cases) in Delhi riots cases, courts red-flag ‘fabricated’ evidence and pulled up the police. Signature Style Nirbhay’s writing is characterized by its procedural depth. He excels at summarizing 400-page chargesheets and complex court orders into digestible news for the general public. X (Twitter): @Nirbhaya99 ... Read More
