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Wangchuk and CJP founder Abhijeet Deepke have received support from most major opposition parties, farmer leaders, activists and celebrities, including Bollywood actors.
Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi said the students’ demand was “legitimate” and called Modi “the most anti-youth prime minister India has ever had”.
The government did not meet the protesters until Monday when Health Minister JP Nadda asked some CJP leaders to hear their demands.
The meeting took place against the backdrop of tens of thousands of people from across the country turning out to participate in the CJP’s proposed march to Parliament on the opening day of the rainy session.
Nadda, a senior leader of the ruling BJP, said, “The meeting was held in a peaceful atmosphere. I have requested all the opposition to stop their sit-ins and help the administration to restore normalcy.”
CJP spokesperson Saurav Das said the group’s 10-minute meeting with Nada ended with a promise that the government would look into the matter, but there was no concrete confirmation. Another CJP leader, Ashutosh Ranka, dismissed the four-hour meeting as a “waste of time”.
At one point on Monday evening, the CJP seemed willing to drop its protest following their meeting.
But after internet service – which appeared to have been down in the area all day – was restored, their position appeared to be strong, reflecting the scale of the insurgency.
That day I saw protesters bringing injured people to Jantar Mantar; Among them was a young student who was bleeding profusely and had a broken leg when volunteer doctors treated him.
As the protestors met Nada, police and security forces stepped in to clear the Jantar Mantar. Among them, plainclothes, veiled, uniformed police officers chased the protestors and beat them with sticks.
A repeated announcement over loudspeakers warned the protesters: “Get out now, this protest is over.”
