New Delhi 20 Jul : Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Monday met Home Minister Amit Shah as the Monsoon Session of Parliament began, amid the CJP’s ‘Sansad Chalo’ march and protests over the NEET issue.
Officials told PTI that Shah met Pradhan at his office in the Parliament House complex. It was not immediately known what transpired in the meeting.
The CJP, led by its founder Abhijeet Dipke, has been protesting at Jantar Mantar since June 20, demanding Pradhan’s resignation over alleged irregularities in the NEET examination and to demand reforms in the examination system and justice for the affected students.
The outfit had given the call for the “Chalo Sansad” march on Monday, the opening day of Parliament’s Monsoon session.
Security was tightened around Parliament on the opening day of the Monsoon Session as authorities shut its gates amid a massive march by protesters demanding the resignation of Pradhan over alleged leaks of competitive examination papers, including NEET-UG.
Sources in the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) told The Indian Express that the turnout far exceeded initial estimates. While authorities had anticipated around 5,000 participants for the Cockroach Janta Party’s (CJP) protest from Jantar Mantar, the crowd had swelled to at least 12,000, a senior officer said.
As the gathering grew, Delhi Police issued an urgent message on Monday morning directing all 14 police districts to immediately deploy one Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP)-rank officer along with 100 personnel each to the protest site. The additional deployment came despite 32 companies of paramilitary forces — comprising over 2,000 personnel — already being stationed across the New Delhi district.
At least seven CJP protesters were detained near the Reserve Bank of India, close to Parliament, during the party’s ‘Sansad Chalo’ march in New Delhi, PTI reported.
As the protest against the Centre intensified, founder Abhijeet Dipke ended his indefinite hunger strike at the request of activist Sonam Wangchuk, who is undergoing treatment at Safdarjung Hospital after a 21-day fast. ( PTI )
