‘Nothing more than a travel vlog’: CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke’s old post on Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra goes viral | Today’s news
As the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) continues its protest against Jantar Mantar seeking the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the NEET exam irregularities, an old post by the organisation’s founder Abhijeet Dipke has gone viral on social media.
In a September 2022 post, Dipke, who was then associated with the Aam Aadmi Party as a political communications strategist, mocked the Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, over his Bharat Jodo Yatra.
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Abhijeet Dipke criticized Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra in a September 2022 post, saying it would end up being “nothing more than a travel vlog”.
Sonam Wangchuk is on hunger strike to support the Cockroach Janata Party’s protest against the alleged irregularities in the NEET (UG) 2026 examinations and demand the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
As of now, Sonam Wangchuk is on hunger strike for more than 19 days which started on June 28.
Concerns include significant weight loss, muscle weakness and general deterioration of health, leading to continued medical vigilance as he continues the fast.
Many have questioned the Congress party’s silence on the protests and Congress MP Shashi Tharoor has called on the party to step in and engage with the situation instead of remaining inactive.
Read also | Who is Abhijeet Dipke? The brain behind the viral ‘Cockroach Janta Party’ campaign
Gandhi launched the Bharat Jodo Yatra in September 2022 and walked from Kanyakumari to Kashmir for 136 days.
“Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra will end up as nothing more than a travel vlog,” Dipke said in his post.
The social media post resurfaced amid the CJP’s protest and the ongoing hunger strike of Sonam Wangchuk, who joined the demonstrations at Jantar Mantar on June 28.
Wangchuk has been on hunger strike for the past 19 days, and as the Ladakh activist refuses to end his fast, fears are growing for the 59-year-old’s health.
Read also | Who is Sonam Wangchuk? What made him famous and who was his father
Congress is silent on CJP’s protest
As the CJP protest continues, many are also questioning the silence of Rahul Gandhi and the Congress party.
In particular, several political leaders, from Akhilesh Yadav to Mahua Moitra and Arvind Kejriwal, pledged solidarity with the protest and urged Wangchuk to end the hunger strike.
Read also | Sonam Wangchuk’s hunger strike: Why Congress is keeping distance from CJP’s protest
While the Congress has not officially appealed to Wangchuk, the party’s Lok Sabha MP from Thiruvananthapuram, Shashi Tharoor on Wednesday urged him to end his fast.
Tharoor’s Open Letter
In an open letter, Tharoor said there will be an opportunity to raise the students’ issues at the highest forum of democracy after Parliament reconvenes from Monday.
“That’s where the problem should be solved, not by fasting unto death. Please heed my plea,” he said.
“My dear young friends, I am addressing you today not as a politician or an MP, but as someone who is deeply concerned about what is happening to your generation of young Indians. It is personal to me. I was born into a middle-class family: my father was a salaried newspaper employee, my mother was a housewife, with three children to raise on one income,” he said.
“For a family like ours, merit was not a slogan. Scholarships, fair exams, honest results – this was the only way one salary could fulfill the dreams of three children,” said the MP.
Nothing was inherited; everything was earned through hard work and trials, he emphasized.
“So I know that a fair system based on merit is the only ladder that young people from lower- and middle-income families can climb. When that ladder is broken —” — papers leaked, exams canceled, trust destroyed — “children of the rich and powerful don’t suffer.
“They have different charts. It is your dreams and your families’ sacrifices (and tragically, in some homes, young lives themselves) that are being betrayed,” Tharoor said in his open letter.
To the young people gathered at Jantar Mantar and those who are peacefully raising your voice across India: this country hears you, he said.
“Your anger is not indiscipline -” is the torment of a generation that did everything right and was still betrayed. You are not alone,” the Congress leader said.
“And to the millions of young Indians watching silently: your generation is not a problem to lead. You are the answer to India’s future. Do not lose hope. You will rebuild this ladder -” you and every Indian who stands with you,” he said.
In his message to Wangchuk, Tharoor “cordially urged” him to end his fast.
“You have awakened the conscience of the nation; that is what fasting is for. India needs your voice on the long journey ahead,” Tharoor said.
In his message, Tharoor urged the government to reach out and engage in dialogue “our democracy owes its young citizens”.
“That’s not weakness, that’s statesmanship,” he claimed.
