Swatantra BharadwajNEW DELHI: Swatantra Bharadwaj, accused of assaulting the father of student activist Nishu Azad during a protest at Jantar Mantar, has been taken into custody, news agency PTI reported quoting Delhi Police. The development comes hours after Delhi Police assured the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) that Bharadwaj would be arrested within 72 hours.

Bharadwaj had earlier evaded a police team in Bulandshahr that had gone to apprehend him, sources said. The accused had been at the centre of controversy after a video circulated on social media in which he was seen claiming that he "cracked the skull" of Sanjay Kumar during the protest.

The CJP was demanding his arrest and had approached the Parliament Street police station on Friday, following which police assured the protesters that action would be taken within 72 hours.