Congress, CJP protests highlights: ‘Owe our students more than outrage’, says Pradhan amid resignation demand chorus

Jantar Mantar CJP protest: CJP convenor Abhijeet Dipke on Tuesday claimed that the government was “trapping” them when they were called for a meeting with union minister JP Nadda.

“JP Nadda invited our panel to have a discussion, and they offered that they would find a solution and have a dialogue. And after calling us for talks, they were conducting a lathi charge here. So, they were trapping us,” ANI news agency cited Dipke as saying.

He added, "They even house-arrested Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka at JP Nadda's house. They took away their phones." Dipke said Das and Ranka could not be reached for three hours.

Jantar Mantar CJP protest: Maharashtra minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule on Tuesday dismissed the students' protest over alleged NEET irregularities as “nautanki (drama)”, claiming it was designed to defame the government.

“This cockroach (CJP) agitation is a nautanki, as they can't find any issues; they are scheming to create resentment in young people. Some young people have joined the movement here out of genuine distress, because NEET was cancelled and they are upset. But that doesn't mean the government didn't take any action,” Bawankule said. He added, “Did any of our ministers leak papers? Did Chandrashekhar Bawankule or Dharmendra Pradhan leak any paper?”

Jantar Mantar CJP protest: Sharing details on the meeting of NDA MPs on Tuesday, union parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had asserted that strong action was taken against those involved in the NEET paper leaks so that no one plays with the future of the youth.

Rijiju said the prime minister told MPs that the government acted immediately after reports of the paper leak surfaced, and 13 people were arrested and sent to jail, PTI news agency reported.

“At the same time, the prime minister said, to ensure that students' future was not affected, the NEET re-examination was given priority, conducted successfully, and the results were declared without delay,” Rijiju said.

Jantar Mantar CJP protest: Abhijeet Dipke on Tuesday claimed that a young woman is in critical condition at Delhi's Ram Manohar Lohia (RML) Hospital after she was allegedly injured during the police lathi-charge on protesters.

Questioning the police action, Dipke said, "A girl is in critical condition at RML after being injured during the brutal lathi-charge. Why did the government unleash such brutal force against the youth?"

The claim could not be independently verified.

Jantar Mantar CJP protest: The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) on Tuesday shared a video on social media alleging that Delhi Police personnel were the ones who vandalised and broke windows of vehicles and later blamed it on protesters. The act was caught on camera.

Jantar Mantar CJP protest: The Delhi High Court will hear on Wednesday a PIL alleging that Delhi Police used excessive force against protesters during the Cockroach Janta Party's Parliament March. The plea seeks judicial intervention over the brutal police action. (ANI)

Jantar Mantar CJP protest: The Cockroach Janta Party on Tuesday urged the students, who had been detained during the protest march on Monday, to reach out to them, providing the link to a form.

“Everyone who has been detained yesterday and facing legal charges, please reach out to us through the form. We will provide the necessary legal help,” CJP said in a post on X.

Jantar Mantar CJP protest: LJP (RV) chief Chirag Paswan on Tuesday spoke about the students' protest at Jantar Mantar, saying he “respects their sentiments”.

“Obviously, there must have been outrage and worry regarding different issues that the students had to come onto the roads. At the same time, I am not in favour of suppressing the voice of the students,” Paswan said. He stressed the need for dialogue, highlighting the CJP delegation's meeting with union minister JP Nadda.

“The way their delegation met JP Nadda ji yesterday, the govt has always kept its door open to dialogue. Sometimes the outrage is so much that people come onto the roads. If limits are crossed and law and order is obstructed, then some stringent actions are taken. I do not support that,” he told ANI news agency.

Jantar Mantar CJP protest: Cockroach Janta Party protesters camped at Jantar Mantar through the night despite rainfall, no electricity at the site, according to CJP, and tight security, PTI news agency reported.

This came after police action against protesters on Monday, following which the stage at the protest site was dismantled and the crowd cleared. Heavy security remained in place around the protest venue as volunteers were seen cleaning the stage, the only structure left standing after police removed the tents and other temporary installations on Monday.

Jantar Mantar CJP protest: The Delhi Police said it had so far registered five FIRs at the Connaught Place Police Station, Parliament Street Police Station and other police stations over vandalism during the protest march on Monday.

The accused are being identified through CCTV footage, the police said, according to ANI news agency.

Jantar Mantar CJP protest: In the health bulletin released on Tuesday, the Safdarjung Hospital said activist Sonam Wangchuk continues to decline Sonam Wangchuk continues to intravenous fluids and glucose administration “despite repeated medical advice.”

Jantar Mantar CJP protest: AAP leader Saurabh Bharadwaj on Tuesday questioned the police action against protesters on Monday. “Since yesterday morning, videos have emerged that clearly show that the central government and the police wanted violence to take place there and wanted to incite a riot. They wanted to attack unarmed 18- and 19-year-old boys and girls from JNU and then file sedition cases against them,” Bharadwaj told PTI news agency.

The AAP leader alleged that a “truck loaded with bricks and stones was found in front of the Parliament Street police station” and “a Maruti van that had already been damaged was parked there”, saying the police had remained silent on this.

“Young men in plain clothes were sitting there carrying sticks. We suspect they were police personnel. But tell me, if a man in plain clothes starts beating young people with a stick, how will anyone know that he is a police officer? People will retaliate against him,” Bharadwaj said, adding that the “police would attack them” thereafter. “f you incite riots, no cases will be registered against the police. Instead, false cases will be filed against others,” he said.

Jantar Mantar CJP protest: Congress MP Renuka Chowdhury on Tuesday moved an adjournment motion under Rule 267, alleging that several gates of Parliament were sealed and internet services were suspended, preventing MPs from leaving the House to meet citizens protesting nearby, ANI news agency reported.

Chowdhury said the heavy deployment of armed personnel and barricades had created an "unprecedented lockdown" around Parliament. “This is not merely a law and order issue. It is a direct infringement of the fundamental right to freedom of movement under Article 19(1)(d) and, more gravely, a breach of the privileges of Parliament,” she said.

Jantar Mantar CJP protest: Singer-actor Diljit Dosanjh on Tuesday voiced support for the students protesting against alleged NEET irregularities and spoke against police action during the protest march on Monday.

“What happened today was very wrong. Students should not have been treated like this. I request the authorities to listen to the students' demand,” Dosanjh wrote in a note on his Instagram story.

Jantar Mantar CJP protest: A day after his meeting with CJP spokespersons Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, union minister JP Nadda said the talks had went off “fine.”

“It was fine, it is always fine,” he said in a brief answer regarding the meeting as he arrived for the NDA Parliamentary Party Meeting on Tuesday, ANI news agency reported.

Jantar Mantar CJP protest: CJP convenor Abhijeet Dipke on Tuesday questioned the presence of “trucks full of stones” at the protest site on Monday.

“And where did all those trucks full of stones come from yesterday? The Delhi Police aren't even letting a bird flap its wings here. Every one of our members is being searched, their bags are being checked, their pockets are being checked. Barriers were blocking everything; people weren't being allowed in. In such a situation, where did the trucks full of stones around Jantar Mantar come from?” Dipke told reporters, ANI news agency reported.

Jantar Mantar CJP protest: Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) convenor Abhijeet Dipke, speaking about the police action against protesters on Monday, said the personnel could have used water cannons to disperse the crowd.

“If they wanted to stop the march, they could have used water cannons. They're just children, after all. These were 17-18-year-old children. We had been sitting here peacefully for a month. Nothing went wrong,” Dipke said, claiming that the first attack on Monday had come from the Delhi Police.

Jantar Mantar CJP protest: Congress MP Manish Tewari on Tuesday expressed support or protesting students.

“In the shadow of struggles, true freedom takes root, history turns that way, where youth marches on. Sangharshon ke saaye mein asli aazadi palti hai, Itihas udhar mud jata hai, jis or jawani chalti hai!” Tewari said in a post on X. “Agitated students, strong nation,” he added.

Jantar Mantar CJP protest: Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi on Tuesday slammed police action against protesters on Monday, saying the students have a “genuine problem.”

“This is no way to treat young people. They have a genuine problem, and we all know what that problem is. Every time they spend money, their parents have to take loans for them. They struggle. They have to go to coaching centers and do all sorts of things. They face immense hardships because they want a bright future for themselves,” Gandhi told reporters, according to PTI news agency.

“This is a very deep-rooted problem…There are thousands and thousands of young people like this. Every parent whose child is preparing for an examination knows what these children go through. We know how much they struggle. And these are children who do not have many resources. So they have a genuine problem,” the Congress MP added.

Jantar Mantar CJP protest: CJP convenor Abhijeet Dipke on Tuesday said activist Sonam Wangchuk, who has been on a fast for more than 20 days now, had been convinced to end it. However, Dipke said that Wangchuk decided to continue after police action on protesters on Monday.

“Sonam Wangchuk was about to end his fast yesterday. We had convinced him, but he decided to continue after the police brutality during the protests,” Dipke told reporters, according to PTI news agency.

Jantar Mantar CJP protest: CJP spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka on Tuesday said youths had been “beaten up” during the protest march from Jantar Mantar a day earlier.

"It was just the Police who used lathis. Our youths were beaten up, their heads cracked open, they were dragged on streets. Sonam sir's wife Gitanjali ma'am's hair was pulled in order to drag her out of truck...Ribs of one of our volunteers was shattered," he told ANI news agency. He added that the protesters had “never expected or seen such brutality”, claiming that the Delhi Police had “crossed all limits.”

He said the incident would “further expand the protest.” “Clearly, they were given instructions to beat up people….More number of people will come to Delhi. We will not move from here until Dharmendra Pradhan resigns,” Ranka said.

Jantar Mantar CJP protest: Azad Samaj Party (Kanshi Ram) chief Chandrashekhar Azad on Tuesday sat on protest inside the Parliament premises over the NEET paper leak issue and against the police action in the CJP protest march on Monday. He demanded the resignation of union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan.

CJP Protest Jantar Mantar LIVE: Actor Sonu Sood on Tuesday said the country's students need “hugs, not batons”, and “arms to embrace, not to strike.”

In a post on X, Sood said, “The future of our country deserves a hug, not a lathi.”

CJP Protest Jantar Mantar LIVE: Rajya Sabha MP and senior advocate Kapil Sibal on Tuesday slammed the government, responding to BJP leader and union minister JP Nadda's statement on the students' proposals.

“Nadda : “…for the first time a proposal came from the protesters to hold talks with the government….” How arrogant ! Our fasting children’s proposals were known to all What was the government doing?" Sibal said in a post on X.

CJP Protest Jantar Mantar LIVE: Visuals by PTI news agency on Tuesday showed heightened security outside the residence of union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan.

A riot control vehicle of the Delhi Police and barricades were seen in the area, along with the presence of police personnel.