Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijit Debaki on Sunday alleged that Indian politics over the past decade has been centered on a Hindu-Muslim agenda, arguing that such issues do little to address pressing concerns such as unemployment.
Addressing a press conference in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar a day after he led a protest at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar, Debki reiterated his demand for the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged NEET paper leaks and glitches in CBSE OSM.
He also stressed that the CJP movement is apolitical and will not align with any party.
1. “Hindu-Muslim agenda cannot create jobs”
The CJP founder said the political discourse in the country needs to shift towards issues that directly affect the youth, especially employment and education.
“We see that the country’s politics has shifted to the Hindu-Muslim agenda in the last 10-12 years. This issue cannot create jobs. We need to shift this focus, and the government’s priorities must also change,” he said.
While Debaki asserted that the unrest would continue after the demand for Pradhan’s resignation, he said that employment remained a major concern for the youth in the country.
“After Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation, we will prepare an agenda to bring changes in the education system. This will not end here as employment is also a major issue in the country,” he added.
2. Renews the demand for Pradhan’s resignation
Defending the demand for the education minister’s resignation, Debke said accountability was missing in the wake of repeated examination-related controversies.
Referring to the alleged leak of NEET papers, he asked: “How can the system work efficiently if no one takes responsibility? If any company faces losses because of someone, will this loss turn into profit until that person resigns?”
He continued, according to the news agency, “A person is fired from a company after two mistakes, but here the examination papers organized by the government are repeatedly leaked,” before asking, “How can we believe that you (the government) are ready to accept mistakes until the resignation is completed?”
3. Responding to the protesters’ criticism
Debke also took aim at statements that were allegedly made about those who participated in Saturday’s protest at Jantar Mantar.
Referring to the turnout at the demonstration, he said: “Large crowd at Jantar Mantar and the pictures speak for the people. How many people will they label as Pakistanis? Will they call the agitating students, the opposition and the media asking questions Pakistanis?”
The Boston learner also asked: “Are IT cell members (affiliated with the ruling parties) only Indians?”
4. “The CJP movement cannot be compared to neighboring countries”
The CJP founder rejected comparisons between his movement and the youth-led protests and regime changes witnessed in some neighboring countries such as Nepal and Bangladesh.
“Because here (in India) there is order. Those who compare our movement with the one that took place in neighboring countries should know that Jantar Mantar was very peaceful. The youth who attended the agitation came from all over the country,” the agency quoted the CJP founder as saying.
He added that future protests will be organized on a larger scale while continuing to remain peaceful.
5. “Not to be associated with any political party.”
Even as political leaders and organizations expressed their support for the agitation, Debke insisted that the AKP would remain independent.
“We did not talk to the leaders of any political party. This movement is for Generation Z. Those who want to support us can support us externally, but we will not associate ourselves with any political party,” he said.
(with PTI inputs)
