New Delhi: A Delhi special executive magistrate (SEM) court on Wednesday evening (October 21) ordered the release of Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) co-convenors Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka from judicial custody, LiveLaw reported. The magistrate court had earlier reserved its order.The court accepted the surety bond and said that the accused may be released from jail if not in custody in any other case, noting that further custody was not necessary. Ranka and Das, in their undertakings before the SEM, assured that they will not commit any breach of peace and will not make any calls for protest at Jantar Mantar till the time it is de-notified in accordance with law.In a video released after their release, Ranka and Das reiterated their call for chief election commissioner Gyanesh Kumar to resign. “Bharat Mata ki jai. Inquilab zindabad [Long live the revolution]. Gyanu must go,” they said, holding an Indian flag.Boys have a messageGyanu must go! https://t.co/53Od3dJZ8W— Abhijeet Dipke (@abhijeet_dipke) October 21, 2026They were released on Wednesday even as the Delhi Police had sought their further judicial custody for three days.The duo had been under detention since October 14. They were sent to Tihar Jail, lodged in separate high-security wards.A day before that, a group of CJP leaders including Ranka, Das and CJP’s national organisation in-charge Ajinkya Shinde had entered Jantar Mantar allegedly through a narrow lane behind the JD(U) office, and unfurled the national flag as part of protests against the CEC in breach of prohibitory orders.They were taken to custody on charges of “trespassing”. The judicial custody, initially for five days, was extended for two more days by the SEM on Monday. SEM Ritu Raj observed that they had deliberately breached their bonds and immediately committed a breach of peace.Speaking to the media, advocate Abhik Chimni, representing Das and Ranka, said, “Today, the prosecution again sought an extension of custody on various grounds, requesting five more days. We opposed the application and had also filed a reply earlier. The SEM was of the opinion that custody should not be extended. We are pleased to say that both Saurav and Ashutosh have been released.”Cases transferred to Crime BranchMeanwhile, on Tuesday, the Delhi police transferred another case registered against the duo to the crime branch, PTI reported.The Delhi police’s crime branch will now be investigating two cases against the CJP leaders.Earlier on Monday (October 19), the first case, filed on the basis of a complaint by representatives of the Janata Dal (United) (JD (U)) office at Jantar Mantar protest site at Connaught Place police station, was transferred to the Crime Branch. It is filed under sections of disobedience of an order given by a public servant, house trespass, and criminal conspiracy, reported The Indian Express.The second case was registered at the Parliament Street police station, the newspaper reported.The Indian Express had earlier cited an unnamed police official who said that it was “unprecedented” that a case of trespass has been transferred to a high-profile investigative agency like the Crime Branch.“It is usually the local police station that handles a case from the crime branch. But maybe it’s because it happened in a high security area,” the official told the newspaper.On Tuesday, the CJP had approached the Delhi high court for listing its petition seeking the release of Das and Ranka from judicial custody on October 21 (Wednesday).The petition filed on their behalf argues that both leaders are being kept in prolonged detention despite having submitted sureties, that the powers exercised by the SEM were “arbitrary” and that they were not “afforded the opportunity” to present the sureties they had ready.The petition was eventually withdrawn.This article was updated with the SEM court’s directive and republished at 7:06 PM on the same day.