CJP March in Delhi Draws Police Action, Government Outreach – Reports

Thousands of supporters of the youth-led Cockroach Janta Party clashed with police in central Delhi on Monday during a march towards Parliament, while the government opened talks with protest leaders over their demands for accountability in examination paper leaks, media reports said.

Supporters of the CJP marched towards Parliament demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, with clashes taking place at several points between Jantar Mantar and Parliament, reports said. There were multiple reports of injuries to protesters and security personnel, mobile internet was blocked around Jantar Mantar and Parliament, and security forces later moved to clear the protest site and remove tents.

The protest, now in its 23rd day at Jantar Mantar, escalated after activist Sonam Wangchuk was shifted to Safdarjung Hospital on Saturday, with police citing his health condition. CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke then began a hunger strike but ended it on Monday after Wangchuk asked him to conserve his strength for the movement, reports said.

Police and paramilitary personnel stopped protesters as they waved the national flag and chanted slogans against Pradhan and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Barricades snarled routes to central Delhi, while television visuals showed police using batons against some protesters and tear gas being fired near Parliament. Some protesters also hurled stones at police, reports said.

Delhi Police denied using force and said the protest was being handled professionally.

Police fired tear gas and charged protesters with batons after demonstrators tried to breach security barricades around the protest site, according to reports. Many protesters continued moving towards Parliament in smaller groups despite the crackdown, while the government appeared to open its first formal outreach to movement leaders.

The scale of the mobilisation appeared to stretch security planning. Around 10,000 protesters had gathered near Jantar Mantar by Monday morning, prompting Delhi Police to call reinforcements from all 14 districts and deploy additional personnel despite 32 companies of paramilitary forces already being in place. A senior security official was quoted as saying the force had not anticipated the scale of the protest.

Delhi Police had said ahead of the march that no permission had been sought or granted for the proposed procession to Parliament. Police described the march as illegal, saying it would disrupt law and order in a high-security zone, endanger public safety, and choke traffic. Prohibitory orders were in force in New Delhi district, barring protest marches, processions and assemblies of five or more people except at the designated Jantar Mantar site with prior permission.

Talks between the government and the protesters became the second main thread of the day. CJP leaders Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka met Union Minister J.P. Nadda, with Das saying Nadda assured them that he would discuss the matter internally. The CJP placed three demands before Nadda: immediate release of Wangchuk, Pradhan’s resignation and compensation of 10 million rupees each for families of NEET aspirants who died by suicide, reports said.

Nadda later said talks had taken place in a cordial atmosphere, that the CJP delegation submitted a written petition, and that he had asked protesters to end their sit-in and help restore normalcy, according to reports. The CJP maintained there had been no commitment on its demands and that the agitation would continue until they were met.

There were conflicting reports during the day on Dipke’s status. CJP spokesperson Saurav Das was initially quoted as saying Dipke had been detained, but later clarified that he was not under detention or arrest. Delhi Police also denied that Dipke had been detained, calling such reports misleading.

A large crowd remained outside Kerala House, reports said.

Wangchuk remained a central figure in the protest from hospital. He asked hospital authorities in a handwritten note to allow him to join the march, at least temporarily, and said he would end his hunger strike if the government accepted responsibility for failures in the education system and if lawmakers assured him the issue would be taken up. Wangchuk also sought temporary release from Safdarjung Hospital, saying he was feeling fine and that his health parameters were normal.

Wangchuk’s wife, Gitanjali Angmo, said he would call off his fast if political leaders met him at the hospital and assured him that education accountability would be raised during the Monsoon Session of Parliament.

She also urged supporters to maintain peace and discipline ahead of the march.

The movement began over examination irregularities and paper leaks. The CJP campaign started after question papers for a national medical entrance test leaked in May, forcing about 2 million students to take the exam a second time. Dipke and his supporters began a sit-in last month seeking Pradhan’s resignation, and Wangchuk joined them on June 28 by launching an indefinite hunger strike.

The Cockroach Janta Party emerged in May after a Supreme Court remark comparing some unemployed young people to cockroaches was embraced by supporters and turned into a satirical, youth-led movement, reports said. The campaign has since broadened into a protest focused on paper leaks, the education system and unemployment among young people.

The political response broadened through the day. Opposition leaders including Priyanka Gandhi, Akhilesh Yadav, Omar Abdullah and Arvind Kejriwal criticised the police action or expressed support for the protesters. Aazad Samaj Party chief and MP Chandra Shekhar Azad visited the site and said he would raise the issue in Parliament, while actor Prakash Raj was also present, reports said.

Pradhan met Union Home Minister Amit Shah at the Parliament House complex during the protests, though there was no word on what was discussed. Shah also met Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal and Pradhan as the government sought to manage the situation, reports said.

The protest disrupted central Delhi. Rajiv Chowk, Janpath, Patel Chowk, Central Secretariat and Seva Teerth metro stations were temporarily closed in view of the march. Security was tightened around Parliament Street, Central Vista, Connaught Place, Shankar Chowk and other key installations.

Reports also pointed to the protest moving beyond Delhi. CJP supporters shouted slogans in Mumbai on Sunday over alleged examination irregularities and repeated paper leaks. Hundreds of students, youth and senior citizens also joined a protest in Nagpur on Monday in support of Wangchuk and the CJP agitation.

By late Monday, the immediate questions were whether the government would give further assurances after the Nadda meeting, whether Wangchuk would end his hunger strike, and whether the CJP would continue its sit-in after police action at Jantar Mantar. The protesters’ core demand remained Pradhan’s resignation over alleged failures in the examination system, while police maintained the Parliament march had no permission and that restrictions were needed around the high-security zone.

* Compiled from reports by Reuters, Associated Press, The Indian Express, Hindustan Times, Scroll, ABP Live, The Week, Economic Times, Times of India and The Guardian.