‘This is gundagardi’, Uttarakhand High Court pulls up State over activist’s detention ahead of CJP protest

Published 21 July 2026 · local

Terming the government’s action as ‘gundagardi’ (hooliganism), the Uttarakhand High Court on Tuesday (July 21, 2026) criticised the State over the detention of Uttarakhand Parivartan

Terming the government’s action as ‘gundagardi’ (hooliganism), the Uttarakhand High Court on Tuesday (July 21, 2026) criticised the State over the detention of Uttarakhand Parivartan Party chief Prabhat Dhyani, who was picked up by police while he was travelling to Delhi to participate in the protest called by Cockroach Janta Party (CJP). Also read | CJP protest at Jantar Mantar updates on July 21 Hearing a petition challenging Mr. Dhyani’s detention, a Division Bench of Justices Ravindra Maithani and Siddhartha Sah questioned the legal basis for preventing him from travelling to Delhi to join the protest.

“What lawful direction the activist had allegedly violated...,” the Bench asked. Defending the detention, the counsel for the State cited prohibitory orders under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) imposed in the national capital. He argued that citizens are bound to obey lawful police directions and added that violating prohibitory orders in Delhi could amount to a cognisable offence. He also argued that there were concerns of national security. The Bench, however, questioned why the Uttarakhand Police had sought to prevent a person from travelling to another State.

“I have a right to move anywhere in the country. Who are you to stop me?” Justice Maithani observed, adding that any alleged violation of prohibitory orders in Delhi would fall within the jurisdiction of the Delhi Police, not the Uttarakhand Police. “It is gundagardi...,” Justice Maithani remarked further questioning the State on what lawful direction allowed it to detain Mr. Dhyani. When protest meets crackdown: Cockroach Janta Party protest in pictures 1 / 3 The Bench then directed the police officer responsible for the politician’s detention to file a response before the next hearing, which is scheduled after four weeks.

Dhyani was detained from Rishikesh railway station on July 19 after posting on Facebook that he supported climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, who was on a hunger strike at Jantar Mantar. In the post, he intended to participate in the CJP-led protest in Delhi. Although Mr. Dhyani was released within 24 hours after being traced to Ramnagar police station in Nainital district, one of his associate, Lal Mani, moved the High Court challenging the detention via advocate Snigdha Tiwari.