Our Bureau
New Delhi
Cockroach Janata Party on Saturday announced that it has withdrawn the 37-day long agitation at Jantar Mantar in “good faith” after Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan stepped down from the Council of Ministers and the outfit received assurance on other demands from the government.
Addressing a press conference at the Constituion Club in the national capital, CJP’s Chief Spokesperson Saurav Das said, “Cockroach Janta Party declares that we withdraw the agitation in good faith, with the understanding that the agreed-upon terms will be executed within the agreed-upon timelines.”
Following the third round of talks with Union Ministers J P Nadda and Jitendra Singh at the Constitution Club, the CJP said that the Central government has agreed to provide suitable compensation to the families of the NEET aspirants who died by suicide and assured to withdraw the FIRs lodged against protesters anywhere in India.
The CJP has presented a five-point demand charter before the government and will hold the next round of talks after four weeks.
Spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka said, “We had demanded compensation of Rs 1 crore for the families of NEET victims. The government has agreed to this, stating that an honorary compensation will be given to those families under whatever rules and regulations allow. Apart from this, we also placed a five-point demand charter before the government, which talked about broader educational reforms and exam reforms. We will meet the government again in about four weeks regarding that demand charter so that we can work together on broader reforms. If all these demands are agreeable to the government, then we would also like to withdraw the agitation.”
“All our demands have been accepted, so we request the protesters to withdraw immediately and return home peacefully. We will inform you of our future strategy or any other issues. But we request the protesters to withdraw immediately,” he added.
Several FIRs have been filed against protesters across India after the July 20 ‘Chalo Sansad’ march at Jantar Mantar. The CJP had demanded a withdrawal of the FIRs and no legal action in the future. Das said that the government has agreed to the demand.
Saurav Das said, “Our second demand was that all the FIRs filed against the protesters, not just in Delhi but in all BJP-ruled and BJP-allied states, should be withdrawn. This was also our second demand. The government has accepted that demand as well. Furthermore, the withdrawal will be done shortly. The government has assured us that it will share copies of all the FIRs filed – as per our last information, 15 to 20 FIRs were filed in Delhi – and we will receive those copies within three to four days in any case. The government has also assured that the withdrawal will be done shortly.”
“Understanding this, we have shared a draft with the government, which is a written guarantee. The government has said it will share this with us by Tuesday. We hope that by Tuesday we will receive the government’s guarantees regarding these FIRs and any future action,” he added.
The Cockroach Janata Party (CJP), beginning as a satirical social media account from CJI Surya Kant’s remarks, led the movement along with activist Sonam Wangchuk at Jantar Mantar in the national capital, demanding Pradhan’s resignation.
The controversy began as NEET-UG paper leak emerged in May, while the re-examination was held on June 21.
Earlier, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Saturday resigned from his post, saying he had sent his resignation to Prime Minister Narendra Modi to ensure that the situation arising from the protests over examination irregularities was not exploited by “anti-national forces.”
In a letter shared on X, Pradhan said, “The situation that has emerged at Jantar Mantar and elsewhere in the country should not be exploited by anti-national forces. The unity of the country must remain intact. The future of every student in India should not get entangled in legal complications.”
“Keeping these considerations in mind, I have sent my resignation to the Hon’ble Prime Minister,” he said.
Pradhan’s resignation comes amid widespread protests across the country over alleged examination irregularities and follows a 26-day hunger strike by activist Sonam Wangchuk at Jantar Mantar.
I have always held an unwavering faith in the strength of our democracy and have deeply respected the aspirations, dreams, and expectations of our youth. They are not just the future of India, but also the carriers, creators, and architects of a new and developed India.
“My heart is saddened by the sequence of events over the last 10 days. For me, this is not a matter of personal reputation. The youth power of India is the real strength of this country. It is my resolve that we will not let the country’s youth power get trapped in a vicious cycle of confusion,” Pradhan wrote.
Defending the government’s response to the NEET-UG controversy, Pradhan said irregularities were found in the examination held on May 3, 2026, following which the Centre handed over the investigation to the CBI, cancelled the examination and announced a re-examination.
“From the very first day, I took responsibility for the situation and never turned away from it. My resolve was that we would not allow the prospects of any meritorious student to be harmed because of the examination controversy, and that no student would be subjected to injustice,” he said.
He said the re-examination for more than two million students was successfully conducted on June 21 with the cooperation of state governments, district administrations, students, parents and guardians.
Pradhan also said that the NEET-UG examination would be conducted in Computer-Based Test (CBT) mode from next year.
Pradhan also expressed gratitude to Prime Minister Modi for his guidance and support, saying that serving the nation remained the “highest priority” of his life.
“I deeply respect the aspirations, emotions, and legitimate expectations of the country’s youth. Realizing the dreams of India’s younger generation has been a moral commitment of our political and social life. I express my gratitude to the Honorable Prime Minister for the opportunity I received to serve the nation under his visionary leadership,” he wrote.
Meanwhile, the Centre is preparing to introduce a stringent anti-paper leak law, which will establish Special Fast-Track Courts and a Special Task Force (STF), alongside other key provisions, to curb paper leaks across the country.
