After Delhi, why Cockroach Janta Party is turning up the heat in Bengal

After Delhi's Jantar Mantar, Abhijeet Dipke and his Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) have turned their attention to Bengal. The trigger was the alleged assault on a CJP activist and his father by BJP workers after he exposed the lack of basic amenities at a local primary school. The activist's father later succumbed to injuries, sparking a massive controversy and inviting the ire of the CJP. The CJP has given the Suvendu Adhikari-led government a 10-day deadline and a list of four demands, failing which it has warned of a Jantar Mantar-like agitation.

The brutal killing has shaken Bankura district, around 200 km from Kolkata. On August 13, CJP activist Shaik Abdul Hafiz, who was part of the Jantar Mantar protests over exam paper leaks, went to inspect the primary school where he studied as part of the outfit's 'School Thik Karo' campaign. As part of the campaign, Dipke has urged CJP volunteers to spotlight the abysmal condition of public schools in the country.

WHY CJP ACTIVIST WAS ATTACKED IN BENGAL?

The 27-year-old Hafiz filmed the dilapidated condition of his school, inspected the drinking water facilities and toilets before returning home, unaware of the tragedy that would unfold a few hours later. At around 8 pm, a mob of around 100-150 people allegedly gheraoed his home, barged in and thrashed Hafiz. Hafiz claimed they were local BJP workers.

He told the media that they snatched his phone and forced him to delete the videos of the school. They also allegedly demanded that Hafiz record a video saying that he highlighted the school's conditions under external influence.

When Hafiz resisted, he claimed that he was attacked with blades, iron rods and sharp weapons. When his father, Janab Mafik, intervened, he was also brutally thrashed. According to a report in The Indian Express, Mafik suffered a critical blunt-force trauma to his head. Hafiz sustained a severe neck injury.

The ordeal, however, did not end there. With the mob still outside their house, Hafiz and his father could not be taken to hospital for around two hours. The police later arrived and rushed them to a nearby hospital.

The mob followed them to the hospital as well. After treatment, as Hafiz and his father were returning home, they were assaulted again. As Mafik's condition worsened, he was shifted to Burdwan Medical College and Hospital on August 15. He died there that night.

The incident grabbed attention after Hafiz recorded a video and shared it on social media platforms, tagging the CJP. In the video, Hafiz alleged that he was being monitored round the clock and his family was being intimidated.

CJP GIVES BJP GOVT 10-DAY DEADLINE

CJP legal department head Ratna Singh also shared a handwritten note by Hafiz in which he named five people for "intimidating" and "assaulting" him. Singh said she had tagged the West Bengal Police, but no action was taken.

CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke demanded the immediate arrest of all the miscreants and announced that a delegation led by Ashutosh Ranka would visit Bankura. "It makes my blood boil that people are being murdered simply for demanding better schools," Dipke said in a hard-hitting X post.

As the issue boiled over, eight people were arrested. It included Ashtam Majhi, a BJP leader and booth president.

Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari, however, claimed the BJP had nothing to do with the attack. However, he assured swift action and said house guards have been stationed outside Hafiz's residence.

"Nowhere the FIR said BJP workers (were behind the attack). All of them were miscreants, and action will be taken per the law," Adhikari told reporters.

West Bengal Police denied that Mafik was "brutally assaulted" and claimed that he sustained only a "minor injury".

"Mafik got self-admitted to Burdwan Medical College after experiencing severe blood pressure fluctuations. No life-threatening injury was found by doctors. Sadly, Mafik passed away that night," police said in a statement.

The incident has turned into a full-blown spat between the CJP and the BJP government. CJP co-convener Ashutosh Ranka met the activist on Monday and gave the government a 10-day deadline to fulfil four demands.

It included an FIR against all the accused, a court-monitored, impartial probe into police misconduct, and round-the-clock state protection to the victim's family. Ranka also claimed that Hafiz's family does not want any compensation, but a modern school for the poor in his village named after his father.

The CJP warned that if the demands were not fulfilled, it would gherao the Bankura district magistrate's office.

CJP VS BJP IN FRESH TUSSLE

The CJP's tussle with the BJP continued on Tuesday as well. In a post on X, Ranka claimed a scheduled CJP meet-up had to be cancelled after the venue owner received threats from BJP workers. He also claimed that six other venues refused to host the event, citing "massive pressure" from the state.

"This only reinforces the fact that the BJP is scared of the cockroaches. We promise to make up for it with a much bigger event very soon," Ranka said.

"Most importantly, Cockroaches of Bengal will continue to visit schools and push the Bengal government to get them fixed. The more you stop us, the bigger we become," he further warned.

Later in the day, the CJP held a press conference, upping the ante against the BJP government.

"BJP leaders threatened Hafiz and his family. They called him a terrorist. Hafiz and his family are true patriots of this nation," Ranka said. He underlined that over 2,000 schools had been shut in the last few years in Bengal. "The state government must rejuvenate those schools," he demanded.

The fresh CJP vs BJP flashpoint in Bengal comes weeks after its massive protest in Delhi's Jantar Mantar forced Dharmendra Pradhan to resign as Education Minister. Matters came to a head on July 20, when a brutal police crackdown on student protesters marching to Parliament resulted in several injuries. Some also suffered pellet gun injuries. The incident, instead of weakening the protest, only gave it fresh impetus.

As the CJP turns its attention to Bengal, will the Suvendu Adhikari government accept its demands? The clock is ticking.