NEW DELHI: Cockroach Janta Party founder Abhijeet Dipke on Wednesday slammed Centre’s move to deploy 20 additional CRPF companies in the capital in view of the students’ protest that has witnessed violence during the party’s Sansad Chalo march on July 20.The forces, all drawn from the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), are being airlifted from West Bengal after the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) ordered their immediate deployment in the national capital on Tuesday night.“What is the government planning to do? Was the students’ blood spilled by the Delhi Police and RAF on 20 July not enough?” Dipke posted on X while reposting a comment by a journalist stating that the Centre will be deploying additional troops in the capital.
Abhijeet Dipke posted on X
He said the students had been peacefully protesting at Jantar Mantar for over a month and questioned whether the government wanted “more innocent students to bleed.”As per news agency PTI, the 20 CRPF companies are being airlifted from Kolkata to Delhi to strengthen law and order arrangements amid protests by CJP and the Congress during the ongoing Parliament session.Officials said the immediate deployment was necessitated by multiple instances of violent clashes during the latest protests.A CRPF company has a strength of about 100 personnel.So far, about 30 companies of the CRPF and its specialised anti-riots unit Rapid Action Force (RAF) have been provided by the Centre to the Delhi Police to beef up security measures in view of the Cockroach Janta Party’s (CJP) protest and the Monsoon session of the Parliament that began on July 20, according to the officials.Meanwhile, protesters of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) continued their sit-in at Jantar Mantar on Wednesday, as more supporters gathered at the protest site overnight.Volunteers also received food and other supplies sent by sympathisers, with the agitation over alleged irregularities in competitive examinations entering its second month.In a post on X on Wednesday morning, the CJP claimed that “thousands and thousands of protesters are at Jantar Mantar this morning” and reiterated its demand for Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation.“Why does the Pradhan Mantri (prime minister) love the Mantri Pradhan (Minister Pradhan) more than India’s youth?” the post read.CJP spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka said the agitation would continue until Pradhan resigns.Late Tuesday night, CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke issued a clarification that the movement had not called for any gathering anywhere other than Jantar Mantar.“Cockroach Janta Party has not given a call to assemble anywhere but at Jantar Mantar, where our peaceful protest is on,” Dipke said in a statement, alleging that the group had received reports that “some goons” may have been sent to other parts of Delhi to create disturbances.“They are not with CJP,” he said.The agitation began on June 20, demanding accountability over alleged examination irregularities, reforms in the education system and the resignation of Pradhan.Activist Sonam Wangchuk, who joined the protest on June 28 and has been on an indefinite hunger strike since then, has continued his fast from Medanta Hospital after being shifted there from Safdarjung Hospital following a Delhi High Court order.Wangchuk has said he will continue the fast until accountability is fixed in the education system or political leaders assure him that the issue will be taken up in Parliament.(With agency inputs)
