After holding talks with BJP leader JP Nadda, Kokroch Janta Party (CJP) leaders on Monday said their protest would continue, refusing to leave Jantar Mantar despite police clearing the site and dismantling the theatre.
Addressing his supporters from atop a truck near Kerala House, near Jantar Mantar, CJP leader Abhijit Debaki accused the government of trying to weaken the resolve of the protesters.
“This government wants to break people’s morale, and it seems that it has accomplished a lot,” Debaki said, urging his supporters not to lose hope, saying that movements for change take time.
“I did not come back from the United States to retreat. Some people think that change can happen in one day. I understand that you all come from a far away place, but this is a long battle,” he said.
Addressing his supporters, Dibek said that although the protesters had sufficient numbers to escalate the unrest, they deliberately chose to restrain themselves. “I will take the blame that the CJP did not march to Parliament today because I was concerned about the safety of the students. If we had wanted to, India could have been like Nepal or Bangladesh. But we did not allow that to happen,” he said.
Even after the protest site was evacuated, RJD leaders, including Debki, Sourav Das, Ashutosh Ranka and Gitanjali, wife of activist Sonam Wangchuk, continued their sit-in near Kerala House.
Also Read: CJP Live Protest: ‘He will not back down’ – says Debaki as police clear Jantar Mantar and dismantle theater
In a post on the
Addressing the crowd, Ashutosh Ranka said the agitation would continue until Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan stepped down.
“Arrest us all, otherwise we will continue protesting until our demands are met,” Ranka said.
“We will not leave Jantar Mantar until Dharmendra Pradhan resigns,” he added.
CJP meets JP Nadda and makes three demands
The new announcement came hours after CJP representatives Sourav Das and Ashutosh Ranka met Union Health Minister and BJP president JP Nadda to press the party’s demands.
Speaking after the meeting, Das said the delegation asked the government for three main actions: the immediate release of activist Sonam Wangchuk from hospital, the resignation or dismissal of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, and compensation. $1 crore to the families of over 20 NEET students who allegedly died by suicide.
“We met JP Nadda twice. During the meeting, we announced our three demands… The protest will continue until Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation is secured,” Das said.
It was later published on X that the delegation spent nearly four hours at Neda’s home, and that although demands were conveyed, no guarantees were given.
“The Minister assured us that he will discuss this matter at the appropriate level. However, no commitments have been made so far. The peaceful protesters will not rest until the demand is met,” Das wrote.
In a post on X, JP Nadda confirmed that the government held discussions with the protesters after they sought talks.
“This morning, for the first time, a proposal came from the protesters to hold talks with the government… I asked all the protesters to end their sit-in and help the administration restore normal life,” he said.
Despite the appeal, RJD leaders remained at the protest site till late evening, reiterating that their agitation would continue until their demands, particularly Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation, were met.
