The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), which organized a protest at Jantar Mantar in the national capital demanding the removal of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, thanked the Delhi Police for extending its support to the peaceful agitation.
Newly appointed CJP spokesperson Sourav Das took to X to post a ‘thank you’ message to the police for extending support to the democratic protest and arresting ‘anti-social elements’.
The political group, which emerged from an online campaign last month, held a protest led by its founder Abhijit Debke at Jantar Mantar to demand the dismissal of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. The party warned that unrest would expand across the country if he was not removed or did not resign voluntarily.
In an earlier statement, she said, “Thousands of youth from across the country gathered at Jantar Mantar in a peaceful demonstration demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.”
Thanking the Delhi Police for its cooperation, the CJP said the group’s priority was peaceful demonstration, adding that the agitation remained peaceful throughout.
She added, “This protest is the result of great popular frustration and the lack of an outlet to register it. Before today’s demonstration, 8,000 people had already signed petitions demanding the minister’s resignation. However, there was no response from the government.”
The CJP started as an online campaign as a result of anger against the statements of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant. Within a few weeks, the group had amassed more than 22 million followers on Instagram.
The group has now warned of larger protests if no action is taken within seven days.
“This is the beginning of the movement. If no action is taken within seven days, this movement will spread throughout the country,” the statement read.
Delhi Police warns against fake news
Meanwhile, Delhi Police announced incorrect reports claiming that an FIR has been registered against protesters at Jantar Mantar.
“Some social media posts and news reports claim that Delhi Police has registered an FIR against protesters at Jantar Mantar. It is clear that no such FIR has been registered,” a Delhi Police social post said, warning people against circulating unverified information.
Tell Them We’re Not Afraid: Abhijit Debaki
CJP founder Abhijit Debaki, while addressing a press conference in Jantar Mantar, warned of bigger protests against the government if the demands were not met, saying: “Tell them, we are not afraid.”
Debaki, who called for the protest, arrived in Delhi from the United States on Saturday morning. He went to Jantar Mantar after getting permission from Delhi Police.
He said, “This is not just my mother’s fear. This is the fear of my father, any young man who speaks about politics… How long will we live in fear? Tell them, we are not afraid.”
“My friends, this is a long struggle. It has been a month since we started demanding Pradhan’s resignation on social media, but these individuals are so shameless that instead of taking necessary action, they focused on other distractions, like hacking our accounts and deleting our posts. You may be able to delete our posts, but you cannot erase us from this space,” he added.
