Aparna Sen says she wept seeing ‘brave and courageous’ students at CJP protests: ‘What a lesson we can learn from them’
As many as 50,000 protestors took to streets in the national capital on Monday to demand the resignation of education minister Dharmendra Pradhan, according to HT reporters on ground.
The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) called for a march from Jantar Mantar, where the protestors have been camped for a month, to the Parliament, attracting a huge response, with thousands descending on the designated protest site on Monday. It was met with several challenges. This included lathi charge and use of tear gas shells by security forces to disperse the crowd marching towards the Parliament.
What Aparna Sen said
Veteran filmmaker Aparna Sen has weighed in on the ongoing student protests, and showed her solidarity for the youth of the nation showing up and demanding change. The filmmaker took to Instagram and shared an emotional note, in which she said, “My name is Aparna Sen. I just want to say that last night I learnt from our students the meaning of democratic dissent. I learnt from them how to believe in the constitution and work according to it. I had become like many of us, so de-moralised, so depressed, so de-spirited, thinking what is the use of protesting against anything. What is the use of asking for anything that we deem as democratic right…”
She added, “These students gave me a glimmer of hope. They showed me it can be done. They believed in the democratic way, they protested peacefully, non violently, totally in accordance with the constitution and believed that they would be heard. This was so moving that I… all of last night, I just wept. I thought to myself how brave, how resilient, how courageous these children are! What a lesson we can learn from them. All I could think was blessing them with all my heart and saying ‘shabaash (bravo)!’ We can learn from you, thank you!
In the caption, she mentioned, “20th July was an unforgettable night! Our children showed us the way when we had become blasé. Today I feel outraged at the way those unarmed kids were beaten up! How dare they! How dare they hurt the future of our nation? Some of those kids will be our future leaders, doctors, scientists, educators and artists! And we beat them up instead of nurturing them! This is unacceptable! The nation must stand in solidarity with them. It is now or never.”
What happened at the protests on Monday
According to Delhi officials, during Monday’s protest by Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) in the New Delhi area, the protesters displayed unruly, aggressive, and violent behaviour. Despite repeated warnings and lawful directions issued by the police, they refused to disperse and deliberately violated the prohibitory orders in force. The protestors, however, claim that Delhi Police personnel targeted them indiscriminately, leading to several injuries on their side as well. Several videos on social media show Delhi Police personnel lathi-charging the students and resorting to firing tear gas. Protestors have alleged that people in civil clothes without police accreditation attacked them as well.
What are the protests about
The CJP-led protests have been ongoing for over two weeks amid allegations of irregularities in the education sector, particularly the alleged leaks of NEET exams. Social activist Sonam Wangchuk also joined the protest earlier this month, starting a hunger strike at Jantar Mantar.
