Less than 24 hours after one of the most violent confrontations between the Delhi Police and protesters in decades, thousands of students, activists and supporters streamed back to Jantar Mantar on Tuesday. as the protest entered its 32nd day.
The gathering turned the protest site into a renewed show of defiance as the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) hardened its stance against the Centre.
Making it clear that the party no longer saw value in backchannel negotiations, Abhijeet Dipke accused the government of using talks as a diversion while the police acted against protesters.
Speaking with The Tribune, he said, “Our representatives were called for discussions, their mobile phones were taken away and they were virtually confined at Union minister JP Nadda’s residence for hours. While we were waiting for talks, students were being beaten up on the streets.”
Declaring that the party would not attend another meeting with the government, he said, “If the government wants to talk, it must come to Jantar Mantar.”
The Centre has not responded to the allegations.
Tuesday’s turnout was significant because it came a day after the police used force to stop thousands of protesters attempting to join the CJP’s “Sansad Chalo” march on Monday. Images of injured students, bloodied protesters and detained activists had spread rapidly on social media, drawing widespread political attention.
Adwait, a protester who came from Bihar last week, said, “After getting that sort of treatment from the police, I really do not care what it takes to demand accountability.”
Another protester said, “They think tear gas and lathi-charge wil stop us, we will fight back. We have made our group, exchanged numbers and we will make sure we do not leave Delhi unless the government meets our demands.”
The brutal crackdown appeared to galvanise supporters instead of neutralising them, with students, civil society groups and political leaders reaching Jantar Mantar throughout the day.
Nationalist Congress Party (Sharad Pawar faction) chief Sharad Pawar visited the protest site, where Dipke stepped down from the stage to receive him personally. NCP (SP) MP Supriya Sule also reached Jantar Mantar in support of the protesters.
AAP’s chief Arvind Kejriwal later joined the gathering, adding to the growing political backing for the agitation after Monday’s violence.
Escalating pressure on the administration, the CJP announced that if all detained protesters were not released immediately, it would organise a march from Jantar Mantar to the Delhi Police Headquarters, followed by a sit-in protest there on Tuesday night.
As per sources, the police contacted party leaders and opted to release all detainees.