Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke has received an offer to join the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA), as Union minister Ramdas Athawale said on Monday that the CJP convenor should consider joining his Republican Party of India (A) to “fulfil Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar's dream”.
Dipke has not yet responded to the minister’s offer. The CJP leader has also previously ruled out entering electoral politics, saying that people have lost faith in politics and the election system.
Union minister’s offer for Abhijeet Dipke
Speaking to reporters on Monday, Athawale said CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke should consider joining his RPI (A) party to fulfil Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar's dream, while also helping strengthen society and the party.
Notably, the Republican Party of India (A) is part of the BJP-led coalition at the Centre.
“I think Abhijeet Dipke is an Ambedkarite. He is active and young. He should consider joining Republic Party of India (A),” he said.
{{/usCountry}}“I think Abhijeet Dipke is an Ambedkarite. He is active and young. He should consider joining Republic Party of India (A),” he said.
{{/usCountry}}While inviting Dipke into politics, Athawale said the government believes that those who do wrong should be punished.
He appeared to be referring to the CJP and student-led protests at Jantar Mantar last month that led to Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation as Union education minister over the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak case and other examination-related irregularities.
“We are a government that believes people should be punished if they do wrong. So, he should join the ruling faction,” Athawale said.
What Dipke said on entering politics
While the CJP founder has not responded to the latest offer, he has previously said that he does not want to enter politics and that the CJP should continue as a movement.
Earlier this month, Dipke said people had lost faith in politics and the election system. He said the country needed a public movement rather than another political party.
In an interview with news agency ANI, he said, “We have no such intention. We are seeing how political parties are being split using the ED and CBI. Votes are being deleted in elections. At this point, when people have lost faith in politics, what will we do by forming a political party?”
He added, “The way people are losing faith in the judiciary, election system and even the media, this country needs a public movement.”
Dipke, CJP launch ‘School Thik Karo' campaign
The CJP leader on Saturday launched the "School Thik Karo" campaign from his native village in Maharashtra's Hingoli district, saying that poor students were suffering because of the government's neglect and calling for a cap on private school fees.
The 30-year-old, who is now leading a ‘pressure group’ against the government, urged sarpanches and parents to take up the “social and moral responsibility” of ensuring better basic facilities for children.
In a video message posted on social media, Dipke said government schools in villages had been “neglected and ignored” for the past 80 years. He also questioned why children in rural areas still lack access to facilities available to students in larger cities.