CHHATRAPATI SAMBHAJINAGAR: The two-day core committee meeting of the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) on Thursday was overshadowed by two separate controversies, with one of its core members leaving midway amid reports of differences with founder Abhijeet Dipke, while two youth leaders from Gujarat staged a protest outside his residence, alleging favouritism in the party’s functioning.Sources in the CJP told TOI that core committee member Vaishnavi Gaur left Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar on Thursday morning after an alleged heated argument with Dipke at his residence.According to the sources, Gaur booked an Air India flight to Delhi that departed at 11.20am, returning to the national capital before the meeting concluded.When contacted, Gaur denied that her departure was linked to any dispute.“I had to leave for Delhi due to a family emergency,” she told TOI in a crisp reply.While CJP sources acknowledged that differences had emerged, no party office-bearer officially commented on the reported disagreement.In another development, two youth activists from Gujarat reached Dipke’s residence and staged a protest, accusing the party leadership of favouritism and excluding grassroots members from the newly constituted core committee.The protesters, identified as Manish Brahmbhatt and Rahul Pandey, claimed they had been associated with the student movement since its inception at Jantar Mantar and had worked as coordinators during the campaign.They alleged that only people close to Dipke were invited to the core committee meeting, while several activists who had worked for the movement were ignored.The duo claimed that the movement belonged to youth from across the country and not to any individual.They alleged that around 450 coordinators had been associated with the Jantar Mantar agitation but were not given representation at the meeting.The protesters further alleged that they had remained in touch with CJP spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka until late Wednesday night regarding the meeting and the future of the movement, but did not receive any clear response.Warning of an indefinite protest, the duo said they would continue their sit-in outside Dipke’s residence until activists associated with the movement were given adequate representation in the party’s decision-making process.Police teams present at the spot took them into preventive detention.
