Dhruv Rathee Says ‘I Was Kidnapped, Not Detained’, Slams Police After Release (Video)

YouTuber Dhruv Rathee has accused the police of forcibly taking him from his Gurugram residence, alleging that plainclothes personnel entered his bedroom while he was sleeping and that he sustained injuries while being taken away. In a video released after his late-night release, Rathee described the incident as a “kidnapping”, criticised Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government over action against protesters and compared the crackdown to an “undeclared Emergency”.

At the beginning of the video, Rathee also showed his Indian passport, asserting his Indian citizenship amid questions raised publicly about his nationality and immigration status. He alleged that a false narrative was being circulated about him being a foreign national.

“I was not arrested or detained, I was KIDNAPPED,” Rathee wrote in a post on X while sharing his account of the incident.

‘I Was Kidnapped'

I was not arrested or detained, I was KIDNAPPED.

Thank you for your support, here's the full story 👇 https://t.co/gcN8cAUOmY

— Dhruv Rathee (@dhruv_rathee) October 11, 2026

Dhruv Rathee Says Plainclothes Personnel Entered His Bedroom

Recounting the incident, Rathee said he was asleep when people in plain clothes entered his bedroom. He alleged that the police action was coercive and claimed he was injured while being taken away from his home in Gurugram. Dhruv Rathee Released After Being Detained by Delhi Police Ahead of CJP Protest.

Rathee questioned the manner in which he was taken into custody and rejected the description of the incident as a routine detention. His use of the word “kidnapped” reflects his characterisation of the episode and is not an established legal finding.

According to media reports, around 30 police personnel in plain clothes reached Rathee’s residence in Gurugram’s Sector 56 on Saturday morning, October 10. He was subsequently taken to a crime branch office, where he remained in custody until late that evening.

Indian Passport, Responds to Citizenship Questions

Rathee began his video by showing his Indian passport and asserting that he is an Indian citizen. The move came after former Bengaluru Police Commissioner Bhaskar Rao sought a review of Rathee’s citizenship, passport and immigration status following his participation in an anti-SIR protest in Bengaluru. CJP Leaders Abhijeet Dipke, Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka Released on INR 50,000 Surety Bond, Says Delhi Police.

Rao, who unsuccessfully contested the 2023 Karnataka Assembly election on a BJP ticket, asked the Union Home Ministry to verify Rathee’s nationality and the conditions under which he had entered and was staying in India. The request raised questions about whether Rathee held German citizenship and what immigration status applied to him.

In his video, Rathee presented his Indian passport as evidence of his citizenship and pushed back against what he described as a false narrative about his nationality. The questions raised by Rao were requests for official verification; they do not, by themselves, establish that Rathee is a foreign national or has violated any law.

Dhruv Rathee Slams Modi Government

Rathee also criticised the government over the detention of activists, political leaders and other people seeking to participate in the CJP demonstration. He portrayed the police action as an attempt to suppress dissent and compared the wider crackdown to an “undeclared Emergency”.

His remarks targeted Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the government’s handling of protests against the Election Commission’s electoral-roll revision exercise. Rathee argued that the treatment of protesters raised concerns about democratic freedoms and the right to question those in power.

The comparison with an Emergency is Rathee’s political assessment of the events, rather than an established legal or constitutional finding.

What Police Said About Rathee’s Detention

Gurugram Police said Rathee was detained after he declined requests from Delhi and Gurugram police teams not to travel to Delhi for the CJP protest. According to a senior police official, permission for the planned demonstration had not been granted, and the authorities wanted him to comply with restrictions intended to maintain public order.

Police described the action as preventive, saying it was taken to avert potential law-and-order problems. Rathee’s allegations, meanwhile, focus on how the personnel entered his home and the circumstances in which he was taken away.

The two accounts differ in their characterisation of the incident. Rathee has described it as a kidnapping, while police have maintained that he was detained in connection with the planned demonstration.

Why Were Activists and Political Leaders Detained?

The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) had called for a demonstration at Jantar Mantar demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.

Authorities stepped up security in Delhi ahead of the protest, with barricades and restrictions imposed at several locations. Police detained people attempting to reach the demonstration, including CJP leaders Abhijeet Dipke, Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, who were taken into custody after their flight landed at Delhi airport.

Several opposition leaders, activists and other public figures were also detained or reportedly placed under restrictions. The police action triggered criticism from political opponents and supporters of the protest, who questioned the restrictions on assembly and the treatment of demonstrators.

Dhruv Rathee Released After Late-Night Detention

Rathee was released late on Saturday night, according to police officials cited in media reports. He shared his account of the incident after his release, challenging the police’s description of the action and raising questions about the broader response to the CJP protest.

The episode has brought renewed attention to the dispute over electoral-roll revisions, the authorities’ power to restrict demonstrations and allegations that police action was being used to curb political dissent. While officials have cited law-and-order concerns, Rathee has portrayed the detentions as part of a wider crackdown on critics of the government.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 11, 2026 12:33 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).