After Rajasthan school students’ protest gets CJP boost, authorities promise action

About 50 activists from the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), headed by co-convener Ashutosh Ranka, joined a student-led protest at a dilapidated government school in Rajasthan's Alwar district. The Government Senior Secondary School in Jodhawas faced a fallen slab from its roof earlier in the week, and five of the six senior teacher positions remained vacant.

During the protest on Friday, August 14, 2026, Ranka and others engaged in an altercation with police over accusations that BJP-affiliated individuals infiltrated the school and attacked protesters. Ranka, alongside other CJP activists such as Deepak Balyan, Mukesh Allrounder, and others, condemned the poor school conditions, stating that 84,000 classrooms across Rajasthan were in poor shape, threatening the education of 15 lakh children.

Ranka challenged the BJP government to repair the buildings or face the largest protest in Rajasthan's history if their efforts fell short. He also criticized the State Education Minister's announcement of a need for ₹20,000 crore for infrastructure, noting that only ₹500 crore had been released. He called for the funds to be mobilized through various channels, including the PM CARES Fund and Central loans.

After talks with Education Department officials on Friday evening, the sit-in ended. Chief District Education Officer Mahesh Gupta pledged to address the teacher shortage and resolve all grievances. The authorities assured protesters that all classrooms would be repaired within a week, seven new classrooms would be built over the next three months, a playground would be created by the village panchayat within three months, and a damaged bridge on the school's approach road would be made passable within two days.