NAGPUR: Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder and activist Abhijeet Dipke on Tuesday ruled out entering electoral politics, saying citizens should not be compelled to contest elections just to demand their basic rights.Addressing a press conference ahead of a major nationwide demonstration, Dipke criticised the Centre for failing to engage with the country’s youth in the wake of the NEET-UG paper leak controversy.The CJP, a satirical collective that has rapidly evolved into a political movement, organised a massive demonstration at Samvidhan Square, where hundreds of youths and students—many wearing cockroach masks and holding placards—gathered to demand the immediate resignation of Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan, just days ahead of the scheduled medical entrance re-examination.When asked if the CJP planned to contest future elections, Dipke questioned the premise, saying, “Why should we contest elections? If everyone in this country has to contest elections to demand their rights, how will it work?”Turning his focus to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Dipke said he must first apologise to the families of the five or six students who reportedly died by suicide in the aftermath of exam irregularities and subsequent cancellations.“Pradhan Mantri ji tweets if anything happens across the world, but here, students of this country are committing suicide, and there is not even a condolence tweet for them. How long will you talk about your ‘Mann ki Baat’ and ‘Pariksha pe Charcha’? At least listen to the students’ Mann ki Baat,” Dipke said, adding that regular interaction would help the government understand and solve student grievances.He also defended the role of public agitation, reacting to critics who have compared the group’s mobilisation to recent unrest in neighbouring countries.“India is a country that was liberated through protests. It remains a democracy because of the protest. It is sustained by protest, and it is a very good thing for a healthy democracy,” Dipke told PTI.The demonstration site became a flashpoint when a group wearing saffron stoles arrived at Samvidhan Square, chanting “Jai Shri Ram,” confronted the demonstrators, and accused the CJP of misleading the youth.They alleged that “urban Naxals” had infiltrated the gathering to raise anti-RSS slogans, leading to heated verbal clashes between both sides before security personnel intervened.During his address to the crowd, Dipke highlighted the suicide of Akansha Chaturvedi, a NEET aspirant from Madhya Pradesh who ended her life in Nagpur, and also directly criticised Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis over his recent “anarchist” remarks directed at the movement.“If they are calling me an anarchist for standing up for Akansha Chaturvedi, then I am an anarchist,” Dipke asserted, vowing to stand by the students “come what may.”He advised the assembled youth to reject religion-based politics and join a movement focused on their actual future.Responding to allegations that he and his followers were “anti-national”—a label he claimed was even attributed to a 17-year-old student who exposed a separate exam scam—Dipke questioned the government’s definition of patriotism and its development record.“They promised Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar (previously Aurangabad) and Pune would be Smart Cities. Nothing has become smart. I’ve travelled across five or six states under the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan and didn’t see a single clean state. And the bullet train? It’s been 12 years. How many more years do you need?” he asked.The US-educated political communications strategist also dismissed criticism of his affluent background, challenging the notion that social service requires financial renunciation.“In our country, in our mind, in our psychology, there is this thing that if someone wants to do social service or wants to do something for the country, he should be a fakir. Why should he be a fakir? People who earn well, come from good families, and they cannot do anything with their own money.“How long will we live in this mentality that if you want to change the country, you will have to give up everything? I come from a good family. I have studied in the USA. I am well-positioned to buy my own tickets, and I will do that,” he said.Reiterating that CJP’s nationwide agitations will not cease until Pradhan steps down, Dipke said the movement belongs to the country’s youth.“There is no question of my personal future. The question concerns more than a billion students. The youth who are worried about their future should join us,” he said.(With agency inputs)
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