Cong, AAP to stay away from Cockroach Janata Party’s protest tomorrow

Pune: Opposition parties have decided to distance themselves from the second round of protests seeking Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation by Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) scheduled in Pune on Thursday.

Soon after returning from the US, CJP’s founder Abhijeet Dipke led an agitation in Delhi’s Jantar Mantar on June 6 to highlight the NEET paper leak and irregularities in CBSE’s On-Screen Marking system and sought Pradhan’s resignation. Dipke travelled to Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, his hometown, from where he announced the second round of agitation in Pune on Thursday.

While the INDIA Bloc, consisting of 23 parties has demanded Pradhan’s resignation, they are not joining hands with the CJP which has got millions of followers in less than a month of floating the platform.

Dipke is planning the agitation at Savitribai Phule Pune University. CJP representatives submitted an application to the Chatushrungi police station seeking permission for the protest. They have been called to the police station to complete the formalities. “We will grant them permission,” a senior police officer said.

The Congress said it will not join the protest. Prashant Jagtap, chief of the party’s Pune East unit, said, “We support the demand made by CJP to remove Pradhan as the education minister. However, as a political party, we will not join the protest. As the leading opposition party in the country, Congress is raising issues, including the NEET exam paper leak, inflation and unemployment in various states. In the INDIA Bloc meeting in Delhi on Monday, the opposition has demanded the resignation of the education minister.”

Following the Delhi protest, Dipke said he will lead similar protests across the country till Pradhan takes moral responsibility for issues pertaining to the education ministry and resigns from his post. While CJP is looking to get more support for its agitation, mainstream political parties have taken a wait-and-watch stance on the CJP’s agitation.

Like Congress, Aam Aadmi Party has also supported CJP’s demand but has decided to stay away from Thursday’s protest. Mukund Kirdat, state spokesperson of AAP, said, “CJP’s demand is valid and govt should remove Pradhan without further delay. However, our party will not be a part of the agitation in Pune. They (CJP) have started a movement and are building a pressure group but have a long way to go if they are thinking of floating a political party.”