New Delhi | The Delhi Police has informed CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke about the death of his grandmother in Maharashtra and left it to him to decide whether he wants to remain under detention and continue the protest or return home for her last rites, police sources said on Saturday.
Dipke's paternal grandmother, Savitribai Shankarrao Dipke, 85, died at her home in Santuk Pimpri village in Maharashtra's Hingoli district around 11.30 am on Saturday following a prolonged illness, family sources said.
Her last rites will be performed at 10 am on Sunday, they said.
Dipke, along with Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, was detained by the Delhi Police at the airport upon their arrival from Mumbai for the proposed protest at Jantar Mantar against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.
The CJP said that the three leaders were detained from inside the aircraft soon after it landed in the national capital.
A cousin of Dipke said the family had initially been unable to contact him because he was detained in Delhi. His parents had been informed and were on their way to the village, the cousin said.
Dipke had met his grandmother on August 15, when he launched the 'School Thik Karo' campaign in Hingoli district, and had met her once more after that, family sources said. He had not been able to see her in the last 20-25 days, they added.
Meanwhile, police detained over 500 people on Saturday as protesters attempted to reach Jantar Mantar despite heavy security deployment across the New Delhi district. The demonstration had been proposed against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, but police had denied permission and imposed prohibitory orders in the area.
