Guwahati: A fresh war of words has erupted in Assam over visits by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) to government schools, with the All Assam Students Union (AASU) questioning the purpose of the campaign and CJP accusing the influential student body of turning an education issue into a political controversy.
The dispute centres on CJP’s “School Thik Karo” campaign, launched to inspect government schools, assess infrastructure and interact with students, teachers and local residents. The campaign has brought the condition of several schools and the question of public access to school campuses into the spotlight.
AASU general secretary Samiran Phukan has questioned the timing and nature of the visits, warning that such activities could contribute to an unstable situation in the state. AASU president Utpal Sarma has also said CJP should understand Assam’s wider concerns, including illegal immigration, constitutional safeguards, fundamentalism and drug abuse. Sarma stressed that AASU has itself raised issues surrounding the state’s public education system for years.
CJP has rejected the criticism and invited AASU representatives to accompany its teams during school visits. The organisation said the focus should be on seeing conditions on the ground, hearing students and teachers and pressing the government for improvements rather than engaging in political arguments.
The controversy follows visits by a CJP team led by co-convener Ashutosh Ranka to government schools in the Palashbari and Dispur areas. The team reported shortcomings in infrastructure and basic facilities, including concerns at Rampur LP School. The visits came shortly after Ranka and other CJP members were detained by Assam Police and later released.
The school visits also prompted the Assam Education Department to issue directions covering campus security, sanitation, academic discipline and student privacy. The instructions included measures concerning outsiders entering school premises and photography or videography of children.
However, the government subsequently clarified that there is no blanket ban on citizens or guardians visiting government or provincialised schools. Education Minister Ranoj Pegu said visitors may offer suggestions but must not disrupt classes or the academic environment. The clarification came amid the controversy surrounding the CJP campaign.
With AASU and CJP now taking sharply different positions, the dispute has moved beyond school inspections to a larger debate over public education, civic participation and who should be able to question the functioning of Assam’s government schools.
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