Chennai: We The Leaders founder K Annamalai has questioned Union govt’s handling of the protests by Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) and criticised attempts to “brand all anti-govt protests as anti-national and funded by foreign forces”.In an X post on Wednesday, Annamalai recalled a 2011 statement of Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressing support for anti-corruption protests against the then Union govt. He said that now, however, there is a crackdown on protestors. “Today, you could be jailed indefinitely, your surety bonds could be rejected, and a special executive magistrate will play circles around you when he/ she is empowered to deal with preventive bond cases,” he said.Annamalai said that though he disagreed with some of CJP’s tactics, they have the right to protest. He questioned the denotification of Jantar Mantar as a protest site and alleged violation of due process by Delhi police during the crackdown on protestors.“If you question the violation of due process of law in a democracy, you would be called names, and a barrage of attacks would follow, including being labelled a foreign agent,” said Annamalai. He then hit out at Union govt, saying it was “calling all anti-govt protests as anti-national and funded by outside forces”. He said that he suspected whether Union govt was “manufacturing an enemy at all times to keep itself relevant”.
