Opposition Should Not Gloat Over CJP Win Over Modi, It Is A Temporary Retreat For PM

By Nitya Chakraborty

Youth and student protestors led by the less than three month old Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) have won in their battle with the Narendra Modi led government over the resignation of the education minister Dharmendra Pradhan and the other demands for examination reforms. With the government agreeing to most of the demands of the protestors, the CJP suspended the protests on Saturday and announced its decision to follow up the implementation of the assurances given by the centre after one month. Right now, Protesters are the winners, the all powerful PM is humbled.

Opposition parties have rightly called the CJP victory a win for democracy and students protesters. The INDIA Bloc rallied under Rahul Gandhi in favour of the protesters at Jantar Mantar extending them full support, though the Congress, as a party, kept close distance from the Jantar Mantar protests in the initial days of the movement. But the total integration of the INDIA Bloc with the protesters at the fag end has enabled the opposition to share a small part of the victory. But what next for the opposition in the present political scenario of the country mostly dominated by the BJP and the PM Narendra Modi?

It is apparent that PM and his advisers toyed with the idea of diluting the intensity of the protests through some devious means in the early part of last week. Even on Friday night PM appeared confident in his instagram address meant for his young friends. The PMO thought that this conciliatory address of the PM and the announcement of setting up fast track courts to punish the question papers leak culprits would assuage the mood of the protestors. This was however accompanied by the oppressive actions of the BJP led state governments against the online protests by the students and youth through memes many of which were directed at the PM.

Instead of having sobering impact, PM’s address enraged the youth so much that thousands of people, apart from the youth proceeded towards Jantar Mantar on Saturday morning. Many of the experienced officials advised for restraint and if needed, one step backward for the time being. The metros were shut, state polices in borders intensified checking, but still , the flow of the people continued on Saturday morning.

At the other end, the two ministers deployed by the PM for negotiations found the young team of the CJP too tough. They were insistent on all the demands especially the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan. There was no option for the Modi government. Equally, there were big rage against the Delhi police directly under the control of Home Minister Amit Shah for their actions against the protesters on Friday and Thursday. Some well wishers of the government warned that, Delhi was heading like Dhaka of July/ August 2024, the government has to act to end the protests, whatever might be the costs. Only then, PM Narendra Modi gave the green signal to his team of ministers to start the talks and agree to their demands. In the last twelve years of Narendra Modi’s rule, this Saturday decision was a real climb down by the present authoritarian government.

What are the lessons from the Jantar Mantar protests? Firstly, the protests were not just the outrage against the NEET examinations question papers leak, but much more, the outburst of the people was to do with the national political climate as a whole. For educated, the jobs are few, the minorities are being treated as second class citizens, the ruling party is using all the institutions to win elections. Political corruption has reached such a level that the opposition parties are being split and the defectors openly talk of monetary transactions. Nothing less than an Electoral Autocracy.

But still, it is not that the PM is not in control. He is in control and as earlier events have shown, PM Narendra Modi has that uncanny power to take corrective action and emerge stronger. This he did after the electoral disaster of BJP in 2024 Lok Sabha polls. When everyone was talking of further downslide of BJP, PM and his team aided by RSS leadership won every state assembly elections after that and made a history by capturing 207 seats in Bengal assembly by trouncing Mamata Banerjee. Yes, there was large irregularities in many counting centres. But leaving those seats also, BJP could win this time. The victory was the product of continuous work by BJP team and RSS cadres at local level of Bengal.

PM has already taken corrective steps by announcing the setting up of a task force led by Nandan Nilekani to go into examination reforms. The PMO has decided to be in constant touch with the team of CJP to inform them of the status of implementation of the demands which the centre conceded. Both sides will be meeting after a month to review the situation.PMO is monitoring this process under PM’s direction. The Modi government is now taking every step to assuage the hard feelings of the students and youth. For the next one month, the CJP may not hold any new protests.

As regards Opposition, how can it get political capital from the Jantar Mantar movement to take on BJP in the coming state assembly polls and finally in the 2029 Lok Sabha polls. Sourav Das, the leading figure of CJP told London based The Guardian in an interview on Saturday that it would be good if the youth protesters join direct politics. He said “ We want more youth join politics, since presently it is dominated by uncles and aunties who don’t understand our generation”. He agreed that the answer has to be political.

That is the core issue. INDIA Bloc has to see that there is a perfect coordination between the CJP members and protesters with the member parties and many of them are brought in within the ambit of the anti-BJP movement. During Jantar Mantar protests, the three Left parties CPI, CPI(M) and CPI(ML)-Liberation set up camps of their student bodies and worked tirelessly. The Left cadres have interacted with the protestors and shared their views. These protestors can be a part of the broad anti- BJP movement based on the core issues which the protestors are also talking. There is good possibility of expanding this collaboration between the Left parties and the Gen Z. The Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has the appeal of a youth leader. He can take advantage of that to build a long term collaboration with this group. This requires patient and hard work.

INDIA Bloc, battered by splits in its member parties have to look for new allies in Gen Z and the civil societies. They should work for that on a long term basis. Only then, it is possible to take on the present BJP juggernaut led by the PM Narendra Modi. (IPA Service)