The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) has announced its intention to resume a nationwide protest if the government does not withdraw the First Information Reports (FIRs) against student protesters. The party views the temporary order by the Supreme Court regarding the Public Interest Litigations (PILs) related to the protests as causing serious alarm across the country.
Conflict with the Government
CJP's chief representative, Saurav Das, stated in an urgent post on social media platform X that Directive No. 4 of the said order directly contradicts the government's solemn assurances made on July 25th. These assurances included the withdrawal of FIRs and a guarantee that protesters would not face persecution. Das emphasized that CJP had ceased its nationwide demonstrations based precisely on these promises and in complete good faith.
Concerns Regarding Judicial Overreach
A CJP representative expressed concern that the government and BJP-ruled states might use this order, issued by the bench led by India's Chief Justice Surya Kant, to continue filing FIRs against individual protesters and subject them to prosecution. He stated that this was their concern from the outset: that courts could be used, directly or indirectly, to achieve political ends by targeting peaceful dissent.
CJP's Stance on the Court Ruling
Das also pointed out that the government lawyers did not challenge the interim order, despite the Centre being fully aware that negotiations with CJP continued late into Monday night and that a 'solemn agreement' was reached on July 25th. In Das's view, 'the uninformed court decision is completely unacceptable.' He added that a public promise made to thousands of young students and protesters cannot be diluted, undermined, or devalued by subsequent legal changes in a hidden manner, as this leads to a breach of public trust.
Executive Authority Rights
He clarified that the interim order does not prevent the government or BJP/NDA-ruled states from withdrawing FIRs or deciding not to proceed with cases against peaceful protesters, as governments in Bihar and Assam have done. Das stressed that the right to withdraw or not prosecute such cases remains with the executive branch, and the court did not mandate that governments must continue FIRs, which would be a deliberate misinterpretation.
Demands and Warning
Das demanded that the government immediately present the terms of the July 25th guarantees to the Supreme Court to ensure full transparency regarding the commitments made to the nation's youth. He reminded that the youth of India entered this understanding in good faith, and this good faith should not be betrayed. Constitutional institutions must never be politicized or used as a weapon to fail to uphold guarantees.
The CJP representative stated that the deadline for the government to fulfill its guarantees expires on Tuesday. He once again urged the government to honor all its commitments: withdraw the FIRs, guarantee that no protester will face future punitive action, and adhere to both the letter and the spirit of the promise that ended the protests. He warned that if the guarantees are not met, CJP 'will have no choice but to resume the nationwide protest.' Das concluded that a government that breaks its word cannot expect silence from the youth, and if the guarantees are violated, the streets of India will once again become the voice of its youth.
