Amritsar: Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) staged its first rally in Amritsar on Saturday, where supporters renewed their demand for Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation.After arriving at Amritsar airport, the party’s founder, Abhijeet Dipke, paid obeisance at the Golden Temple before heading for Golden Gate, where supporters had gathered for the demonstration.Addressing the media, Dipke claimed that the turnout in Amritsar would surpass the crowds witnessed at similar protests held earlier in Pune and Delhi. However, actual attendance remained moderate and fell short of the expectations projected by the organizers.Responding to media queries regarding his delayed arrival at the protest site, Dipke said he had reached Amritsar on time but was held up in traffic. They had not been provided any security cover or police escort, he said.At the protest site, Dipke led the gathering in raising slogans such as ‘Dharmendra Pradhan Istifa Do’ (Dharmendra Pradhan, resign), ‘Inquilab Zindabad’, ‘Vande Mataram’ and ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’.Interestingly, many of the participants at the rally were said to be associated with Aam Aadmi Party (AAP). When TOI contacted AAP’s Gurdaspur district president Joban about this, his mobile phone was answered by his associate, Preet, who said Joban was attending a meeting. Preet maintained that he had participated in the protest in his personal capacity.Expressing support for the issues raised by CJP, Preet said that thousands of students who had prepared for NEET were suffering because of the way govt handled the examination process.Kamna Anand, president of AAP women’s wing, Amritsar, denied attending the protest but confirmed that her husband, Monu Anand, AAP’s coordinator for South Assembly Constituency, did. She said the issue transcended political affiliations and affected students, families and young people across the country.“It’s not the issue of any single political party. It concerns every family and every youth whose career is at stake because of a flawed examination system,” she said, adding: “As Indian citizens, this issue belongs to all of us and should not be viewed through a political lens.”
