Cockroach Janata Party Protest Amritsar Abhijeet Deepke
Indian Express
A modest protest by the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) in Amritsar on Saturday drew a small crowd, party leaders said. CJP founder Abhijeet Deepke arrived at the Golden Temple in the afternoon and later travelled by car to Golden Gate, where supporters had gathe
red for the rally scheduled from 4 pm to 7 pm. Addressing the gathering, Abhijeet said larger demonstrations were planned in Pune and Delhi.
“I came here on time, but I got stuck in traffic. No security was provided to us, nor did the police give us any special escort,” he told the gathering.
From the stage at Golden Gate, young activists raised slogans such as “Cockroach Janata Party Zindabad” and demanded the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. The number of media personnel present was almost equal to the number of supporters at the protest.
Abhijeet told reporters and supporters that the movement was focused on students’ issues rather than electoral politics. “We have nothing to do with elections,” he said, adding that Punjab has historically played a significant role in national movements and that Amritsar was chosen for that reason. “Until Dharmendra Pradhan resigns, we will sit here,” he said.
The party had obtained online permission for the protest from DCP (Law and Order) Alam Vijay for the 4 pm to 7 pm slot. However, organisers said the demonstration concluded before the scheduled time and Abhijeet left soon afterwards.
Abhijeet described the protest as a students’ rights movement rather than a political campaign. “This is a students’ movement, this is a youth movement and this is a movement to secure justice for students,” he said, referring to a series of recent incidents and alleging that six student suicides warranted justice for their families.
A handful of students from Guru Nanak Dev University and other colleges in Amritsar attended the rally, organisers said. Local app-based workers and a few area leaders were also present. Varun Rana, a local AAP leader, attended the protest and said he was there in his personal capacity. He also posted updates from the gathering on his social media accounts.
Not everyone welcomed the CJP’s presence. Union Minister Manohar Lal Khattar, who was also in the city on Saturday, warned that anyone supporting or funding the party would be considered to be acting against the country’s interests.
There was also a brief altercation involving media personnel and a CJP supporter. Police detained the supporter following the incident.