YouTuber Dhruv Rathee detained ahead of youth protest in India

Indian police detained YouTuber Dhruv Rathee from his residence in Gurugram’s Sector 56 on Saturday ahead of the Cockroach Janta Party’s (CJP) proposed protest at Jantar Mantar in Delhi, according to India media reports.

Rathee has returned to India to join the demonstration, prompting heightened security arrangements across the national capital. Police personnel, reportedly in plain clothes, went to Rathee’s Gurugram residence on Saturday morning and detained him.

The incident drew a sharp response from the CJP, which demanded Rathee’s “immediate release”.

According to the Times of India, a Gurgaon police officer said police had tried to persuade Rathee not to attend the protest, citing prohibitory orders under Section 163 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS) in Delhi and the lack of permission for the demonstration.

“Gurgaon police tried to make Dhruv Rathee understand that he should not join the CJP protest as they don't have permission for the same, he didn't agreed and rather kept posting on social media that he would be at the protest venue in Delhi, we detained him in the morning,” the officer said.

Rathee’s planned participation in the protest has drawn widespread attention on social media. A video announcing his return to India to join the CJP’s demonstrations reportedly received 6.4 million likes and more than 125,000 comments on Instagram.

The video, shared by CJP founder and convenor Abhijeet Dipke on Wednesday night, introduced Rathee as a surprise guest ahead of a protest at Bengaluru’s Freedom Park on 8 October. The demonstration called for the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar.

In the video, Rathee described the agitation as “a fight to protect democracy” and urged people to attend the Bengaluru protest and a subsequent demonstration at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar on 10 October.

“Hello friends, this fight is to save democracy… Let’s meet tomorrow, 8 October, at Freedom Park in Bengaluru. And those living in Delhi, don’t forget to come to Jantar Mantar on 10 October,” he said.

Rathee, who has 33 million YouTube subscribers, 19.2 million Instagram followers and 3.3 million followers on X, also shared a photograph after attending the Bengaluru protest, questioning what the turnout in Delhi would look like. The post received 33,000 likes and 4,400 reshares.

A video of Rathee leading the slogan “Vote chor”, followed by the crowd shouting “gaddi chor”, attracted 2.9 million likes and 41,200 comments on Instagram. On X, it received 88,000 likes and more than 17,000 reposts.

Actor Prakash Raj also appeared in the campaign video. He has previously opposed the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls and backed the CJP’s protests.

Dipke later shared a video of Rathee cutting a chocolate cake, wishing him “Happy birthday and happy first protest”.

In his latest X post, Rathee criticised reported restrictions affecting Delhi’s metro and railway stations ahead of the 10 October protest.

“Why are you so scared, Modi? Your IT cell told us that hardly anyone will come to our protest, so why all these measures?”, he wrote.

Rathee moved to Germany around 2014-2015 for higher education and has since built a large following through videos on politics, public policy and current affairs. Known for his outspoken criticism of the BJP-led government, he has faced calls to participate in protests in India rather than comment on its politics from abroad.