“Our CM is a coward”: CJP protester hits out at Himanta after volunteer detentions

A Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) protester on Sunday, September 27, called Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma a “coward” and alleged that the state government was attempting to prevent young people from raising questions about issues concerning the state.

The remarks came after CJP co-convenor and spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka and several party workers were detained by Assam Police in Guwahati ahead of a scheduled regional volunteers’ meeting. Ranka and other CJP members were detained shortly after arriving for the meeting.

“Our CM is a coward. He is afraid of youth like us,” CJP protester Ananya Saikia said speaking to India Today NE, alleging that the government was uncomfortable with young people questioning its functioning.

Saikia described the CJP as a pressure group and said it was raising issues including the condition of government schools, flooding and concerns related to ecologically sensitive areas such as Kaziranga.

She alleged that the CJP volunteers had gathered peacefully on private property and were discussing public issues rather than staging a protest when the detentions took place.

“If there is a BJP meeting, the government makes people afraid and gives money to people so that they come. But in a CJP meeting, people are coming voluntarily,” Saikia said, alleging that the participation reflected public support for the issues being raised by the group.

She also accused the chief minister of trying to project that everything was fine in Assam.

“He wants to show that everything is fine in Assam and everyone is happy. But that is not the case. If not, why is everyone coming to CJP and why are people supporting it?” she said.

Saikia further alleged that the government was afraid of a different narrative being presented by young people and questioned the state’s approach to freedom of speech and the right to question those in power.

The CJP meeting was initially scheduled at Assam Shree Parshuram Seva Sadan on Kharga Choudhury Road in Athgaon. The organisers later shifted it to Chowdhury Tila, opposite the Assam Secretariat, alleging that pressure had been exerted on the original venue.

The CJP has alleged that more than 30 of its workers, including members of its central committee, were detained. The party also claimed that around 50 people had been taken into custody, though the higher figure could not be independently verified.

Ranka, before his detention, accused Sarma of trying to prevent the group from raising questions about the condition of government schools and issues concerning land, forests and water around Kaziranga.

CJP founder and national convenor Abhijeet Dipke also confirmed the detentions and alleged that Ranka and other members were being taken to an unknown location. The party has demanded their immediate release and sought clarification from the authorities on the grounds for the detentions.

The CJP subsequently held a press conference at Chowdhury Tila, where speakers discussed the detentions, the disruption of the scheduled volunteers’ meeting and the change of venue.