The protest led by the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) at Delhi's Jantar Mantar entered its 10th day on Monday, with party founder Abhijeet Dipke accusing the Centre of showing "apathy" towards families of students who died by suicide and demanding greater accountability over alleged irregularities in competitive examinations.
In a series of posts on social media, Dipke referred to the deaths of Pradeep Meghwal, Aakansha Chaturvedi, Amaira Kumar and NEET aspirant Kahaan Patel, alleging that their families had received neither an apology nor any outreach from the government.
"I really don't understand how people in power can be not just so indifferent, but so arrogant that they don't even feel the need to reach out to families who have lost their children," Dipke said.
"You can't bring their children back, but the very least you can do is express regret and apologise to their families. Is that too much to ask?" he added.
Dipke also shared a video of his interaction with the father of Kahaan Patel, who died by suicide on June 18. Patel's father travelled from Gujarat to Jantar Mantar to raise his concerns with Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
Meanwhile, environmental activist Sonam Wangchuk entered the second day of his indefinite hunger strike in support of the protest. Calling on citizens across the country to join the campaign, Wangchuk urged people to observe a day-long fast in solidarity with demands for reforms in education, accountability and environmental protection.
Also read: CJP protest: Wangchuk begins hunger strike at Jantar Mantar
"This is the second day of my fast in support of CJP and Ladakh. You can also join us... Whole India should come together to make the country better," he said.
Wangchuk began his fast on Sunday, backing the CJP's demands over alleged examination irregularities, particularly those related to NEET, and seeking accountability from the government, including the resignation of the education minister.
The CJP protest, which began on June 20, has since expanded its focus beyond examination reforms to include issues such as the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Separately, six students affiliated with the All India Students' Association (AISA) continued their own hunger strike from a separate stage at Jantar Mantar in support of the protest.
Late on Sunday, Dipke also alleged that the Delhi Police had denied a portable toilet facility for Wangchuk despite inadequate water supply at public toilets at the protest site.
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