JAIPUR: The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) on Friday issued a 48-hour ultimatum to the Rajasthan government to arrest those allegedly involved in an attack on its volunteers during a school inspection in Jaipur district, warning of a statewide agitation and demanding the resignation of education minister Madan Dilawar.The confrontation took place in Rampura Kanwarpura village in Jaipur district, where a CJP team had gone to inspect a government primary school as part of its ‘School Thik Karo’ campaign.CJP co-convener Ashutosh Ranka alleged that the team was attacked by people linked to the BJP and accused the police of failing to intervene.“We had gone to inspect the school in Rampura-Kanwarpura village. For the past several years, the school has been operating in a buffalo shed. We had gone for an inspection last year as well, and the school was being run in a buffalo shed even then,” Ranka said.He alleged that the confrontation was pre-planned and that the volunteers were assaulted before they could reach the school.“Vehicle windows were smashed, phones were broken, a woman was assaulted, my shirt was torn, and one of our team members suffered a fractured hand. They even attacked us with stones,” he said.Ranka directly targeted Dilawar and issued a 48-hour ultimatum.“I want to tell Madan Dilawar just one thing: You have 48 hours. These goons must be arrested. You must withdraw the order, otherwise we will launch a statewide agitation across Rajasthan. And this time, it will not just be about the schools. This time, we will demand Madan Dilawar’s resignation,” he said.Calling the incident “a black day in Rajasthan’s democratic history”, Ranka also accused the police of remaining passive despite being informed about the alleged violence.In a post on X, CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke alleged that Rajasthan Police allowed the attack to take place and shared a video showing a vehicle with a smashed window.The CJP team had visited the village as part of its ongoing campaign to inspect government schools, assess infrastructure and interact with teachers and students.The school at Rampura Kanwarpura has reportedly been declared unsafe, with classes currently being held in a cattle enclosure near the school building.Members of the CJP delegation alleged that the school had been functioning from the makeshift facility for about a year and that they had gone there to assess the conditions and push for repairs.However, local residents gave a different account of the confrontation. They denied attacking the CJP workers and alleged that the team had arrived with a large group and attempted to dismantle the school structure.Jugal Kishore Sharma, a villager, claimed that 200-250 people had accompanied the CJP team and said locals had not assaulted them. He also claimed that Rs 12 lakh had already been sanctioned through the local MLA for repairs.“We did not do anything. They had brought 200-250 people with them. We did not hit them. We spoke to them calmly, but they broke their own car,” Sharma said.Another villager, Anu Sharma, said residents opposed the CJP team’s attempt to inspect or dismantle the school building as 20-25 students study there. She described the incident as a “heated exchange”.The confrontation comes amid a wider controversy over restrictions imposed by the Rajasthan education department on the entry of outsiders and mediapersons into government schools without a specific reason.CJP had earlier criticised the order, alleging that it was aimed at preventing scrutiny of the condition of government schools. Ranka had said the organisation would continue its inspections despite the restrictions.The incident has drawn political reactions, with Rajasthan Leader of Opposition Tika Ram Jully condemning the violence and alleging that the government was attempting to hide the poor condition of schools.Rajasthan Congress president Govind Singh Dotasra also condemned the alleged attack and claimed that BJP workers were behind the incident.Police officials, however, have not confirmed the allegations. Bagru DSP Dharmendra Sharma said he was unaware of the reported confrontation.(With PTI inputs)
