Abhijit Dipke demands Amit Shah's resignation over student protest crackdown

Political tensions in India have intensified over the anti-exam paper leak movement, with Abhijit Dipke, founder of the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) and one of the movement's key organizers, demanding the resignation of Union Home Minister Amit Shah.

Speaking to reporters on Thursday, Dipke alleged that the police crackdown on protesting students in New Delhi on 20 July was carried out under Amit Shah's direction.

He claimed that the use of batons, tear gas, and other forceful measures against students could not have occurred without the Home Minister's approval, adding that the government must take responsibility for the injuries suffered by protesters.

Dipke's remarks came a day after Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi made similar allegations during a parliamentary debate on an anti-paper leak bill. Rahul argued that the police response to the students' march toward Parliament on 20 July was a political decision and that Amit Shah could not evade responsibility. He also called for the Home Minister's resignation.

Echoing that demand, Dipke further alleged that members of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had also been involved in suppressing the protests.

He also rejected claims that the movement had received foreign funding, saying that if such funding had indeed entered India and the Home Ministry had failed to stop it, that too would represent a failure on Amit Shah's part and would be another reason for him to resign.

Dipke further alleged that the Jantar Mantar protest on 20 July was deliberately portrayed as violent.

According to him, stones and a damaged vehicle were allegedly brought to the protest site to create a pretext for action against demonstrators. He claimed that individuals aligned with the BJP threw the stones, while the blame was placed on the protesting students.

The anti-paper leak movement has already led to the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on 25 July. However, protest organizers say the resignation of one minister is not enough, and that their campaign will continue.