Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke on Wednesday accused the Supreme Court of having “aided” the Election Commission in the splitting of political parties and the seizure of election symbols, and questioned its response to alleged voter deletions in West Bengal.Speaking to reporters in Nagpur, where he had come to pay tribute to Dr B R Ambedkar at Deekshabhoomi on Dhammachakra Pravartan Din, Dipke said constitutional institutions must be held accountable for decisions affecting democratic rights.“What was the Supreme Court saying when votes were deleted in Bengal? That it was not a big deal and that people could vote next time if they could not vote this time. Would the Supreme Court tell Narendra Modi not to contest this election and to contest the next one instead?” he asked.Dipke said the court had, in some instances, aided the Election Commission in matters involving the splitting of political parties and the seizure of election symbols. He did not name the cases.His remarks come amid protests over alleged voter-list deletions during the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise and demands for the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. The CJP has been at the centre of those protests in Delhi and Mumbai.‘Unofficial emergency’Dipke also accused the Narendra Modi government of imposing an “unofficial emergency”, pointing to the detention of protesters at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar.“If Narendra Modi wants to impose an emergency in the country, he should do it officially. Why is he imposing an unofficial emergency like a coward? People are being detained for five days for raising the Tricolour at Jantar Mantar. Even during the Emergency, such a thing did not happen. Since when has waving the national flag become a sin in this country?” he said.Story continues below this adHe alleged that three protesters, Saurabh, Ashutosh and Ajinkya, had been held in illegal detention and that their lawyers were initially prevented from meeting them. Saurabh and Ashutosh were later remanded to five days of judicial custody, he said.“What was their crime? Their only crime was that they went to Jantar Mantar and raised the Tricolour. Has raising the national flag at Jantar Mantar become a sin under Narendra Modi’s rule?” he asked.Defending the protests under Article 19 of the Constitution, Dipke said: “If exercising our fundamental right to protest under Article 19 is being described as anti-national, then those making these allegations would have called Mahatma Gandhi anti-national during British rule as well.”Disputes Delhi Police videoDipke also disputed the video released by Delhi Police on his detention, calling it edited. He said that after being informed of his grandmother’s death, he had asked to speak to his brother in his village or to his lawyer, and that the request was denied. Officers called him around 3.30 am to inform him of his impending arrest, he said, alleging the timing was meant to put psychological pressure on his family.Story continues below this adDelhi Police had said in its video that Dipke was offered the option of going home on humanitarian grounds.On INDIA bloc, SalveDipke said the CJP was an independent pressure group with no formal affiliation to any political party, and that its support base was young, politically unaffiliated citizens. He said he had not held specific discussions with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi about the protests, but that the CJP and the INDIA bloc were campaigning for the same cause.“Whatever the INDIA bloc is doing, it is doing to protect the country’s democracy and Constitution. It has every right to do so,” he said.He cited support from West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and Maharashtra leaders Uddhav Thackeray and Raj Thackeray, but rejected suggestions that this made the CJP aligned with any party. Asked whether the CJP would contest elections if ballot papers were reintroduced, he said the deletion of names from voter lists was the more immediate concern.Story continues below this adResponding to remarks attributed to senior advocate Harish Salve comparing the protests with movements abroad, Dipke said: “My request to Harish Salve is that whatever evidence he has, he should give it to Amit Shah. Perhaps Amit Shah has not received any evidence yet. Give him the evidence and let him take action against us. What is the point of making allegations? Conduct an investigation.”