NEW DELHI: Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke has criticised the Centre’s decision to temporarily block Telegram ahead of the NEET re-examination, comparing the move to shutting down a road because of potholes rather than fixing the underlying problem.Speaking to reporters in his native village of Santuk Pimpri in Maharashtra’s Hingoli district on Friday, Dipke questioned the government’s handling of the NEET controversy and renewed his criticism of the education system amid continuing concerns over paper leaks and student welfare.“A re-examination for NEET is taking place, but students’ suicides have not stopped. Five more students have committed suicide in the past 48 hours,” claimed Dipke before leaving for Delhi to participate in a CJP-led protest.Responding to questions about the temporary suspension of Telegram ahead of the June 21 NEET re-test for undergraduate medical admissions, Dipke argued that the measure failed to address the root cause of the problem.“This is like closing a road because there are potholes instead of repairing it….Banning Telegram makes no sense,” he said.Asked about Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s support for students affected by the NEET controversy, Dipke said he had not spoken to the opposition leader but welcomed support from all political quarters.“I have not talked to him so far. But all those leaders who care for students and (think that) paper leaks are harming the future of the country, they should come forward and stand with the students,” he said.Dipke also took aim at Maharashtra’s political class, referring to the recent rebellion involving six Shiv Sena (UBT) MPs. He accused politicians of prioritising political manoeuvring over the concerns of students and their families.“These people should be ashamed. A girl, NEET student, committed suicide, and she lived merely 500 meters away from the residence of Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. They (her family) got no phone call or any kind of help. Her father is paralysed, and cannot run his household now,” Dipke said.“They (politicians) don’t have money to give to the families of the students, and are using money to procure MLAs and MPs,” he added.Dipke further alleged that elected representatives had turned education into a business.“We elect people to run the government and (government) schools. But instead of running the government schools, they start their own schools. It has become a business for them,” he said.Meanwhile, Delhi Police has stepped up security arrangements ahead of CJP’s second protest at Jantar Mantar on Saturday. The demonstration, for which permission has been granted, is expected to attract supporters from Delhi and neighbouring states.Officials said CCTV surveillance, body-worn cameras and multiple layers of barricading have been put in place around the protest site. Reserve forces remain on standby, while the Special Branch is monitoring developments and social media activity linked to the event.The CJP, which began as a satirical online campaign following remarks made by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant during a court hearing last month, has since evolved into a larger protest movement focused on the NEET paper leak controversy and wider concerns about the education system.
