The death of Sheikh Mohammud Mafik, father of CJP volunteer Abdul Hafeez, who was part of the Cockroach Janta Party's (CJP) "School Thik Karo" campaign in West Bengal, should disturb every citizen, irrespective of political affiliation. Days later, on August 21, near Jaipur, another CJP team on the same mission was blocked and pushed out by villagers and alleged “BJP workers”, both sides trading accusations of assault and vandalism. This time there was no death, but the pattern is unmistakable, and it must caution us all.

From Vigilance To Vigilantism

This forces a hard question: can a legitimate demand for institutional accountability turn into mob accountability, where citizens armed with cameras and social media reach assume the roles of inspector, investigator, and adjudicator, all at once? "School Thik Karo" and campaigns like it are a genuine public concern. Government schools must have safe buildings, functioning toilets, electricity, water, and trained teachers if children are to learn with dignity. Citizens have every right to question the quality of public education; public vigilance is essential for healthy democracy.

However, the poor state of our schools is not simply a story of official apathy; it is, at root, a story of demand outrunning supply, worsened by how the available money gets spent. India's large population, which the CJP's own young "Gen Z" base also represents, places an overwhelming liability on public infrastructure, a formidable task even for a well-run state, compounded by the competitive populism of our........

© Free Press Journal