The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) has claimed that an event scheduled in Kolkata on Tuesday evening was cancelled after hall owners allegedly faced “threats from BJP leaders” and “massive pressure from the state”.
In a post on X, CJP co-convenor Ashutosh Ranka said the organisation’s planned meet-up at Bharat Sabha Hall in North Kolkata had to be called off after the venue owners allegedly received threats from BJP leaders. He further claimed that six other halls also declined to host the event, citing pressure from the state.
The CJP had planned the meet-up at the North Kolkata auditorium, where Ranka was scheduled to interact with participants.
Ranka claimed the cancellation indicated that the Suvendu Adhikari-led BJP government in West Bengal was concerned about the organisation’s activities in the state. He said the CJP would instead organise a “much bigger event” in the future.
“This only reinforces the fact that the BJP is scared from the cockroaches,” Ranka wrote, adding that although the organisation would miss meeting supporters in Bengal, it would soon make up for it with a larger gathering.
He also said the CJP would continue its school thik karo (fix the schools) campaign in West Bengal. The initiative involves activists visiting government-run schools, particularly in rural and remote areas, and documenting poor infrastructure and other shortcomings.
“Most importantly, Cockroaches of Bengal will continue to visit govt schools and push the Bengal govt to get them fixed,” Ranka wrote.
The Kolkata incident is not the first time the CJP has alleged that a venue was cancelled in a BJP-ruled state. On August 13, a meeting of CJP volunteers at a banquet hall in New Delhi was reportedly cut short before being shifted to a public park. The organisation had claimed that the venue owners cited “pressure from above” for the cancellation.
CJP THREATENS FRESH PROTESTS IN WEST BENGAL
Ranka’s allegations come amid tensions between the CJP and the West Bengal administration following the death of a volunteer’s father after an alleged attack on August 13.
CJP volunteer Abdul Hafiz, who had taken part in protests at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar, had visited Karishunda Paschimpara Primary School as part of the organisation’s school thik karo campaign to assess its condition. Later that night, a group of assailants allegedly entered his home and attacked family members with sticks, iron rods and crowbars.
Hafiz escaped from the house, after which the attackers allegedly assaulted his father, Sheikh Mohammad Mafik. Mafik later died while undergoing treatment.
The CJP has alleged that the attackers were “BJP goons”, though the allegation remains a claim by the organisation.
On Monday, the CJP gave the state administration 10 days to arrest everyone allegedly involved in Mafik’s death, warning that it would otherwise gherao the Bankura District Magistrate’s office and launch a wider agitation.
“If the accused are not arrested within 10 days and our other demands are not met, we will gherao the district administration office and subsequently launch a larger agitation,” PTI quoted Ranka as saying.
The organisation has also called for a court-monitored inquiry into the conduct of personnel at Indas police station, alleging that the family did not receive sufficient assistance from the police. It has additionally sought security for Mafik’s family.
Meanwhile, Hafiz has reportedly declined financial compensation offered by the state and instead requested that a school be constructed in his father’s memory, according to PTI.
