Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke said on Sunday his agitation over alleged irregularities in examinations and recruitment tests will not stop until Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigns.
Dipke also said their protest at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on Saturday was largely successful, with around 7,000 people participating in it, and added that the movement would now expand nationwide.
Also read: Thousands rally at Jantar Mantar as CJP escalates exam accountability campaign
The CJP founder reached his residence in the MIDC Waluj area in Maharashtra's Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar district on Sunday morning and was welcomed by his family members.
Later, speaking to reporters, Dipke said the agitation undertaken by the Cockroach Janata Party will not stop until Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigns.
''The protest we staged (at Jantar Mantar) was successful, as 6,000 to 7,000 people attended it. This agitation will go nationwide. We won't step back till Dharmendra Pradhan resigns,'' he asserted.
"We will roll out a further action plan to take this agitation nationwide," Dipke added.
Hundreds of protesters gathered at Delhi's Jantar Mantar on Saturday under the banner of the CJP, demanding Pradhan's resignation over alleged irregularities in examinations and recruitment tests, with Dipke delivering the message not to be "scared".
At a press conference later in the national capital, CJP spokespersons announced that they will wait for a week either for the Centre to sack Pradhan or his voluntary resignation, after which they would launch a countrywide protest.
Dipke, in a post on X following the protest, said thousands had made history at Jantar Mantar on Saturday, calling it a "trailer" of what the movement was capable of. He said most attendees had never participated in a protest before but were driven by "sheer anger and frustration" at the education system.
Warning that the agitation would continue if Pradhan was not removed or did not step down within seven days, he added that he would address supporters on Instagram Live later on Sunday.
Dipke, who called for the protest, arrived in Delhi from the United States on Saturday morning, walking out of the airport carrying a copy of B R Ambedkar's autobiography. After receiving permission from the Delhi Police, he reached Jantar Mantar.
Also read: Congress cold, others in Opposition warm to CJP protest at Jantar Mantar
Protesters, armed with posters demanding Pradhan's resignation, were seen wearing cockroach masks, which were being distributed at the venue. Besides demanding the education minister's resignation, the protesters also raised slogans demanding that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) stop indulging in "Hindu-Muslim" politics, and hailed the motherland with "Bharat Mata ki Jai" slogans.
CJP was founded as a satirical platform on May 16, following remarks by the Chief Justice of India about "cockroaches" and unemployed youth during a court hearing. CJP chief spokesperson and investigative journalist Saurav Das had stated at a press conference that the protest was specifically framed as an education accountability movement, adding that transfers were being "projected as action" but were not adequate.
