Kapil Sibal Pledges ₹1 Crore for Student Legal Aid Fund

Senior advocate and Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal pledged ₹1 crore to a legal aid fund established by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) to support students facing criminal charges following a 37-day agitation against the NEET-UG paper leak. The CJP is launching a website and database to track FIRs, coordinate pro bono representation, and collect public contributions to help those facing what Sibal described as the misuse of law.

The initiative follows the CJP's July 25 decision to end nationwide protests after the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and verbal promises from Union Ministers J.P. Nadda and Jitendra Singh to drop cases. Despite these assurances, the CJP alleges a breach of agreement, citing student arrests in Bihar and West Bengal, as well as harassment in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh.

CJP spokespersons Ashutosh Ranka and Saurav Das issued an ultimatum to the Government of India, demanding the immediate release of detained youth and the withdrawal of FIRs. The party warned it would resume nationwide protests if a written agreement on legal protections is not provided by Tuesday. The crackdown has drawn condemnation from Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav and the Congress party, specifically regarding detentions carried out by the Uttar Pradesh Police.