CJP writes to states over school infrastructure, says children 'treated worse than animals'
The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), which has made the condition of government schools a central issue in its ongoing campaign, wrote to all state governments on Monday (August 24, 2026), seeking detailed data on school infrastructure, teacher vacancies, and funding over the past five years.
In identical letters addressed to Education Ministers, CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke pointed out that visuals circulating on social media from government schools across the country showed many children still lacking basic facilities such as safe drinking water, functional toilets, proper classrooms, and even benches.
"It has been 80 years since India gained Independence... No child in this country should be forced to study in such conditions. They are being treated worse than animals," Mr. Dipke wrote in the letter.
The letters mark the latest step in the CJP's campaign highlighting the state of government schools. The youth-led outfit has been using social media to draw attention to dilapidated school buildings and inadequate facilities, while demanding increased public spending on education.
The campaign has also seen confrontations on the ground. A CJP team, including co-convenor Ashutosh Ranka, was allegedly assaulted during a recent visit to a government school in Rajasthan. The CJP accused workers of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of carrying out the attack, a charge the BJP disputed. Cross FIRs were subsequently filed over the incident.
In its letters to the states, the CJP has sought details of the number of government schools renovated over the past five years, as well as those still requiring repairs or complete renovation. It has also asked state governments to disclose the number of sanctioned, filled, and vacant teaching posts, and to provide figures on funds allocated to government schools over the past five years against the amount actually spent.
The party additionally sought estimates of how many new government schools are needed to ensure reasonable access to quality education, and details of non-teaching duties assigned to government school teachers. It also requested data on the number of schools with adequate computers and digital-learning facilities, clean and functional toilets, and proper sports facilities and equipment.
"This is not about politics or any one government. This is about the future of our children," Mr. Dipke said. "Every child, irrespective of where they are born or how much their parents earn, deserves a safe classroom, clean drinking water, a functional washroom, a bench to sit on, and a teacher to teach them," he added.
The party has urged Education Ministries to make the information public and take "urgent steps" to address deficiencies in government schools, calling for improvements to public education infrastructure on a "war footing". The CJP has stated that the data will help in building a roadmap for ensuring that no child in the country is denied quality education due to poor school infrastructure.
