Swatantra Bhardwaj’s viral claims draw scrutiny to his online following

Swatantra Bhardwaj, 22, was detained in Uttar Pradesh’s Bulandshahr district on Friday after a video circulated in which he claimed to have assaulted the father of student activist Nishu Azad during a July 20 protest at Jantar Mantar.

The detention followed protests in Delhi and an assurance by police to Cockroach Janta Party representatives that action would be taken. Bhardwaj is accused of causing serious injuries to Azad’s father during the demonstration; the investigation follows his detention after the protest.

The video also drew attention to Bhardwaj’s social-media activity. His Facebook page had about 327,000 followers and his Instagram account about 184,000 before it was deactivated on Friday. Posts on his accounts included content focused on cow protection, attacks on Muslims and government critics, and photographs with political figures.

Bhardwaj named several leaders in the video while claiming he had little reason to fear arrest. Chirag Paswan said Bhardwaj had misused his name and those of other leaders, and said he had lodged a complaint seeking action.

Police said Bhardwaj had travelled to Naithla village in Bulandshahr before he was detained.