New Delhi: After maintaining relative silence, former Tamil Nadu chief minister M.K. Stalin and former Andhra Pradesh chief minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy have spoken against the arrest of Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) leaders Ashutosh Ranka and Saurav Das.In a post on X, on Thursday (October 15), Stalin offered legal representation and support to Das and Ranka, who were remanded to five-day judicial custody following a protest at Jantar Mantar on Tuesday (October 13).Calling out the futility of such measures, he questioned how many protesters the government could detain and how many young voices the BJP could stifle. “The more young people they jail, the more ordinary citizens, with no political affiliation, will take to the streets and show them the true power of the people!” said Stalin.Expressing solidarity with Das and Ranka, he added that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) was prepared to “provide them with all necessary legal representation and support.”How many protestors can this government detain? How many young voices can the BJP silence?The more young people they jail, the more ordinary citizens, with no political affiliation, will take to the streets and show them the true power of the people!Solidarity with @AshutoshRanka and @SauravDassss! The DMK stands ready to provide them with all necessary legal representation and support. ✊🏾#CJP #GyaneshKumarMustGo— M.K.Stalin (@mkstalin) October 14, 2026Reddy, who is also the founding president of the Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP), also took to social media to condemn the arrests. He argued that the move would only “aggravate the situation” rather than resolving the dispute over the SIR process.“A proactive approach always yields better results than a reactive stance. The system has a flaw that needs to be corrected. Trust in the electoral process must be restored,” he wrote.Backing Das and Ranka, Reddy added, “The arrests of Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka do not solve anything; it only aggravates the situation. I empathise with @SauravDassss and @AshutoshRanka.”A proactive approach always yields better results than a reactive stance. The system has a flaw that needs to be corrected.Trust in the electoral process must be restored. The arrests of Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka do not solve anything; it only aggravates the situation.I empathise with @SauravDassss and @AshutoshRanka.— YS Jagan Mohan Reddy (@ysjagan) October 14, 2026Stalin and Reddy’s reactions come a day after Lok Sabha leader of opposition Rahul Gandhi slammed the government over the arrests, describing the jailing of youth over unfurling the national flag at Jantar Mantar as an “act of cowardice.” The political leaders’ statements add to the widespread criticism of the state’s handling of youth protests by opposition leaders.