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Removing fear of protesting is CJP’s key achievement: Prashant Bhushan
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Prashant Bhushan said money power has become dominant in determining electoral outcomes under the "first-past-the-post" system. (PTI Photo) Supreme Court advocate Prashant Bhushan stated in Bengaluru that the Cockroach Janta Party-led youth agitation removed people’s fear of protesting in public at a time when he said the right to protest is under strain, especially in BJP-ruled states. “The consequence of this Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) movement has been that it has largely succeeded in getting the people, especially the youth, to shed the fear of coming out on the streets and protesting. This is a very important positive achievement of the youth movement in this country… I feel that we are now, despite the fact that our democracy is in very serious peril, seeing some signs and glimmers of hope…” Bhushan said during a talk titled “Is Democracy in Peril in India” at St Joseph’s University on Saturday.“Protests have been restricted to only one place in Delhi… there too you have to first seek permission several weeks in advance and permission is given for a very short time. That makes a mockery, in complete violation of the fundamental right to protest,” he said. Bhushan also suggested that the central government was pressuring the media to fall in line using inducements like public advertisements and means such as the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and income tax raids. He said, “It is because of this social media that we saw this rise of youth power… We saw this Cockroach Janata Party protest which then spread across the country.” Money power and ‘first-past-the-post’ system Bhushan also argued that money power has become dominant in determining electoral outcomes under the “first-past-the-post” system, which he suggested helps even parties with a small vote share win polls. “The Opposition may have 49 per cent of the seats but nothing in the running of the government… voters don’t want to waste their vote on a candidate who they feel has no chance of winning. This assessment is made on the basis of visibility, and visibility is a function largely of money,” he explained.Story continues below this ad Bhushan also criticised the Election Commission of India, including over alleged irregularities in the recent elections in West Bengal. He also talked about the “washing machine” phenomenon of politicians who face legal proceedings “coming clean” after joining the BJP.
MumbaiUpdated: Jul 26, 2026 12:59 PM IST Addressing the gathering, Raj Thackeray described the event as a celebration of the students' victory. (PTI)Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray on Sunday launched a sharp attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, urging him to stop “breaking political parties” and instead focus on governance, while Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) president Raj Thackeray hailed the student agitation that led to Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation. The Thackeray cousins were addressing the Tiranga Vijay Rally at Shivaji Park, organised in support of the youth-led agitation over the NEET-UG paper leak controversy over the last week, which has resulted in the resignation of Dharmendra Pradhan as Union Education Minister yesterday.Referring to Pradhan’s resignation, Uddhav said it had shown that “a cockroach has defeated the Dictator.” “I want to tell Modiji to stop focusing on breaking political parties and instead work on governance. Your Cabinet ministers like Nirmala Sitharaman and Rajnath Singh were busy defending Dharmendra Pradhan” Uddhav said. Describing the gathering as a victory for the student movement rather than a political celebration, he said, “This is not the celebration of winning elections. It is to prove that deshbhakts have defeated andhbhakts. The fire of this agitation has now spread across the country.” He said the opposition was not concerned about elections and appealed to the youth to keep the movement alive. “Modiji has seen that while votes can be stolen, the people cannot be. You youngsters have written a golden chapter in the history of this country. My only request is that you do not let this awareness fade away,” he said.Story continues below this ad Addressing the gathering, Raj Thackeray described the event as a celebration of the students’ victory. “Today is the day to celebrate the victory of this agitation. Gen Z has shown how to make the government bend,” he said. Raj also read out the names of students who allegedly died by suicide following the NEET paper leak controversy, after which the gathering observed a minute’s silence.
The youths have once again shown the country and world modern revolution is a possibility, Uddhav Thackeray emphasised. (File Photo)The Shiv Sena (UBT) and MNS joint rally on Sunday from Shivaji Park to Siddhivinayak temple will be held as per schedule Uddhav and Raj Thackeray announced on Saturday. After the resignation of union education minister Dharmemdra Pradhan, Uddhav Thackeray addressing the media on Saturday said, “The youths fought valiantly taking the country out from the shadow of fear. They exposed the criminal face of ruling BJP which ruthlessly used Police to attack students.”Hailing the student protest that culminated in the resignation of Pradhan, Uddhav said, “The youths have helped this country come out from the shadow of fear. For the last 12 years there have been several instances that saw BJP trusting their decisions on people unmindful of their concerns or hardships. From demonetisation to the politics of defections there have been a series of developments. Today, it took the youths to shake their (BJP) arrogance. The power had gone into their head.” The youths have once again shown the country and world modern revolution is a possibility, he emphasised. Thackeray noted that all those who dismissed Cockroach Janta Party and youths as useful pests have got the taste of their power. The fact is the BJP and its leaders were so power drunk that they lost sight of people. They had started treating people as cockroaches, he said. “Today, we profusely thank all the youths and their parents for taking to street protest and standing against those in power. They deserve to be applauded. It is a great victory,” he said. However, he continued, we will have to wait and see whether the government has accepted the other two demands also about compensation to families whose children died post NEET paper leak.Story continues below this ad The Shiv Sena (UBT) president demanded that all those police persons responsible for attacking students should be identified and punished, and all charges against students withdrawn, in Maharashtra, Delhi and across the country. According to MNS chief Raj Thackeray, “The scheduled Tiranga rally will take place on Sunday from Shivaji Park to Siddhivinayak temple.” Raj maintained the next course of action regarding this agitation will be determined by the CJP who started it. “And we will support them,” he said.
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