Bhubaneswar, Oct 21: BJP national spokesperson and Puri MP Sambit Patra on Wednesday said CJP leaders Ashutosh Ranka and Saurav Das do not belong to the Gen-Z age group and alleged that their judicial detention was linked to a violation of a peace bond, not their attempt to hoist the national flag.
Addressing a press conference here, Patra criticised what he described as a false narrative that Ranka and Das had been sent to judicial custody for attempting to unfurl the Tricolour.
“A narrative was being circulated across the country, and an impression was being created that there are individuals who simply wish to hoist the national flag and that the government is so dictatorial that it prevented them from doing so,” Patra said.
He alleged that the country’s “enemies” were misleading people by claiming that the two were detained and placed in judicial custody solely because they wanted to unfurl the national flag.
Referring to the Delhi High Court proceedings, Patra said the court had raised questions about the identities and ages of the two leaders.
“They are aged 27 and 31 years and therefore do not belong to Gen-Z. Now it should be clear to the whole country that their judicial custody was not a result of their desire to hoist the Tiranga. Rather, it occurred because they failed to uphold the terms of a peace bond they had previously signed,” he said.
Gen-Z refers to people born between 1997 and 2012.
Patra claimed that the two were initially detained on October 10 and released after signing a peace bond, under which they had undertaken not to engage in activities that could lead to a breach of peace.
However, they allegedly violated the bond within hours of their release, he said, adding that the “victim card” being played under the pretext of the Tricolour had been exposed.
Referring to the court proceedings, Patra alleged that the protests initially began with young people taking to the streets over the NEET question paper leak controversy, but the issue had since changed while the individuals involved remained the same.
“In other words, this movement — taking place across the country — appears to be orchestrated by the same group of individuals, driven by a calculated, pre-planned agenda,” he alleged.
Quoting an observation he attributed to the court, Patra said, “The protests can sometimes spiral into arson, looting, and destruction if the organisers lose control. The National Flag of India does not provide you with legal immunity to incite anarchy across the country by using the flag as a cover.”
The BJP leader also criticised Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, accusing him of fomenting unrest similar to that witnessed in countries where, he alleged, democratic institutions were less vibrant than in India.
