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A dramatic day at Jantar Mantar
It’s been a day of mixed emotions for thousands gathered at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar. The morning began with the usual energy, but there was also a sense of nervousness as protesters waited to see whether the government would act.
The biggest question on everyone’s mind was whether Dharmendra Pradhan would resign. In the afternoon, when news of his resignation broke, the mood shifted instantly, sending everyone into wild celebrations.
Now – as night falls – the crowds are beginning to thin. CJP leaders have urged protesters to return home peacefully and told local media that they expect to meet the new education minister soon.
The afternoon celebrations in pictures
‘Need more accountability’
As the day draws to a close, many protesters say they are celebrating a hard-fought victory – but insist their campaign is far from over.
Ria Sharma says she’s happy about the resignation of the education minister, something she’s been protesting for weeks, but wants the Indian government to take greater accountability.
“They have failed students,” the 22-year-old tells BBC Newsbeat as she travelled to the protest with friends earlier today.
“We are looking for no more paper leaks. No student’s future should be under this level of uncertainty,” she says.
Sharma, from Delhi, tells us about a friend who had to retake his exams after an alleged paper leak.
“When the paper leaks happened, he got depressed. He lost all hope in the system. He’s clueless and has no idea what to do in the future.”
Like many other protesters, Sharma says she wants Prime Minister Narendra Modi to meet students and hear their concerns directly.
CJP protesters begin clearing the site
The very same stage dismantled by police on Monday is now being taken down by Cockroach Janta Party volunteers.
For hours, protesters celebrated what to them feels like a hard-earned victory. Volunteer doctors and healthcare professionals are now packing up all the leftover medicines at their first aid stand for donation.
Protesters are still celebrating on nearby streets and police are still standing by.
Multiple times I’ve heard the words “it’s not over”.
This week will likely be a wake-up call for Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He and the BJP are election winners, but they’ve lost the faith of the young protesters here.
Some have told me there’s still time to rebuild trust, but most say “it’s simply too late”.
CJP says it will initiate legal action against personnel who struck protesterspublished at 21:5421:54
CJP leaders say they plan to pursue legal action against police officers they accuse of using excessive force during recent protests.
The movement’s spokespersons, Saurav Das and Ashutosh Ranka, met Delhi Police Commissioner Anurag Kumar a short while ago.
“We made it clear to them that we have resolved to take legal action against every police officer and Rapid Action Force personnel who was seen in videos or photographs using excessive force, and those who directly struck people on the head, causing head and hand injuries,” Das told reporters after the meeting.
He said CJP had launched a website where people could submit evidence and that it planned to file complaints against the officers involved.
The Delhi police is yet to comment on this.
Das also said the movement would be closely watching the new education minister.
“India’s youth will demand accountability,” he said, adding that CJP hoped to meet the minister soon.
“The government has promised to hold a meeting within a month, and then we will see what happens,” he said.
‘The music’s playing and people are dancing’
Reaction is continuing to pour in from protest leaders following Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation.
“We are so happy. You can see the students are celebrating. It is a huge victory,” Viraaj Devang, president of the All India Students Federation, tells BBC Newsbeat from a café in Delhi.
The 29-year-old says he has been part of the protest movement since day one.
“When someone is calling us cockroaches, we say cockroaches do survive,” he says. “They survive earthquakes. We survived, and that’s how we got this win.”
But Devang says the resignation is only the beginning.
“We still have a lot of work to do,” he says, adding that protesters will continue pressing Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government for wider reforms to India’s education system.
Summary
- The youth-led Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) has called off its protest, hours after the resignation of India’s education minister
- Dharmendra Pradhan resigned after weeks of protests over exam paper leaks and testing irregularities.
- The CJP is not a real party, but a satirical campaign turned national movement
- Its protests became one of the biggest displays of dissent against Narendra Modi’s government in years, with thousands camping in Delhi as demonstrations spread nationwide
- The movement gathered momentum last week after activist Sonam Wangchuk was forcibly taken to hospital. He ended his 26-day hunger strike on Friday
- A police crackdown on protesters marching to parliament also sparked public fury
- Protesters adopted “cockroach” after a senior judge used the term for some unemployed young people, reclaiming it as a symbol of resilience and defiance.
