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NEW DELHI: Cockroach Janta Party founder Abhijeet Dipke on Monday called for the immediate restoration of water supply at the protest site at New Delhi’s Jantar Mantar. The newly formed pressure group has been staging a sit-in there over the NEET-UG paper leak issue.As the protest entered its third day, Dipke questioned the authorities over the lack of basic facilities for protesters, saying even essential amenities were not being provided at the venue.The internet sensation-turned-activist has emerged as a face of the growing anger directed at the Centre and Union education minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the NEET-UG fiasco.Writing on X, Dipke appealed to authorities, saying: “I request the authorities to immediately restore water supply to the restrooms at Jantar Mantar.”“For the second consecutive there’s no water supply at the restrooms,” he added.Earlier, Dipke also criticised the Delhi Police and the Union government over the treatment of people supporting the protest. In a post on X, he wrote: “Delhi police is asking for aadhar card details and address of people who are donating water and bananas at the protest site. What has Delhi police been reduced to by this Govt!?”At the protest site, volunteers had organised a langar and were serving lassi to demonstrators. Slippers, metal plates and a few suitcases were seen scattered around after participants spent another night at Jantar Mantar.On the second day of the agitation, focused on the alleged NEET-UG paper leak, Dipke and his supporters refused to leave despite police informing them that permission for the protest had expired at 5 pm on Saturday.CJP spokespersons urged authorities to provide an alternative venue where the sit-in could continue. Until then, they said, protesters would remain at Jantar Mantar. The internet-sensation-turned-protesting group is demanding Rs 1 crore compensation for the families of students who allegedly died by suicide following the paper leak controversy and has also called for the resignation of education minister Dharmendra Pradhan.For many at the site, the protest was an opportunity to represent students and families who could not travel to Delhi. Among them was Gyaneshwar Raghunath Thorat, a 58-year-old resident of Maharashtra’s Sambhajinagar, who said the turnout reflected growing public support for the movement.“These children spend years studying and working hard to secure a better future. It is heartbreaking when the examinations they prepare for are compromised for the benefit of a few,” he said.
