Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke on Thursday launched a nationwide agitation here demanding resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan
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PUNE — Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke on Thursday launched a nationwide agitation here demanding resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, and released an 'exam manifesto' which demanded compensation for students in the event of a paper leak.
As hundreds of students and followers of the CJP participated in the protest at Savitribai Phule Pune University campus, Dipke warned that they would travel to Delhi and stage a protest on June 20 if Pradhan did not resign over the irregularities in competitive examinations.
Students appearing for NEET, CBSE and CUET have suffered injustice, Dipke said, accusing the government of failing to fix accountability.
"Our only demand since the inception of this movement has been the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan. More than one crore students have faced injustice, but nobody is ready to take responsibility or step down," he said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi must decide whether "one crore students or one incompetent minister" was more important, he said.
Alleging that a teacher who participated in a protest at Jantar Mantar in Delhi was suspended, Dipke said timely action against those responsible for examination irregularities could have prevented the need for a nationwide agitation.
The CJP founder also announced a "five-point exam manifesto" aimed at protecting students affected by examination-related disruptions.
"Students should receive compensation of INR 10,000 in the event of a paper leak, postponement of examinations or delay in declaration of results," he demanded.
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Special trains be arranged during large-scale recruitment drives and every examination should have a backup date so that cancelled tests can be conducted within 72 hours, Dipke said.
He also called for physical evaluation of answer sheets instead of online assessment, age relaxation for candidates affected by delayed examinations or results, and mandatory audits of computer-based test systems before examinations.
Contracts for conducting examinations should be awarded strictly on merit, he said.
If Pradhan did not resign, students from Pune would travel to Delhi on June 20 to intensify the agitation, he warned.
Targeting what he described as divisive politics, Dipke said public discourse has increasingly centred around religious issues over the past decade.
"It is our responsibility to ensure that politics over Hindu-Muslim divisions is not entertained. Development has stalled because attention is diverted towards such issues," he said.
Dipke also objected to attempts to label CJP supporters as "Pakistanis", and said several students and activists associated with the movement had worked to expose examination-related issues.
Explaining the symbolism of the party's name and mascot, Dipke said the cockroach represented growing frustration among the youth.
"The cockroach is a message that the youth of the country is fed up with this politics. The system is rotten and the cockroaches will correct it," he said.
Climate activist Sonam Wangchuk, who took part in the protest, expressed support to the agitation led by Dipke, describing it as an effort by an educated youth to draw attention to issues in the education sector.
Speaking at a press conference earlier in the day, Dipke assured that the protest will be peaceful and within the framework of the Constitution.
With the launch of the nationwide campaign from Pune, they will take the movement to various cities, including Jaipur, Lucknow, Amritsar and Bengaluru, before gathering at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on June 20, he said.
They were ready for dialogue with the government, but instead of dialogue, the government was suspending CJP's social media accounts, he alleged.
“CJP is a big message for the country. The government cannot ignore the youth. Instead of calling us fake, try to understand the issues and problems faced by the youth in the country,” he added.
Asked about a purported photograph showing Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Dipke in the United States, which Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut flagged in a social media post, Dipke said it appeared to be AI-generated.
“How can I meet the prime minister? I was just a student in the US. Everyone knows how strict the protocols are for meeting the prime minister,” he said.
Until about 15 days ago, he had been looking for a job in the US, Dipke said.