Education Was Funded By Scholarship And Education Loan, Claims Abhijeet Dipke

The founder of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) claimed that a Boston University scholarship and an education loan covered Abhijeet Dipke's studies in the US. The claims came from Abhijeet Dipke came just one day after an RTI activist requested an investigation into his family's financial situation.

In an interview with prominent journalist Barkha Dutt, Dipke denied claims that unexplained family fortune was used to pay for his higher education overseas.

While revealing his scholarship letter, Dipke said that "My education was funded by a scholarship provided by Boston University. And I had taken some education loan which I have to pay back now."

Amit Tiwari, a resident and activist of Surat, submitted complaints on August 1 with many authorities, including the Maharashtra government, requesting an investigation into the finances of Dipke's father, Bhagwanrao Dipke, a former junior engineer with the Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC). Tiwari questioned how a government worker who reportedly makes between Rs 60,000 and Rs 65,000 a month could afford to send his kid to a college in the US.

"The CJP will do crowdfunding going forward where we will be asking money from people, and we will be very transparent about it," Dipke said in response to queries regarding the organisation's future financial plans.

Recalling the nationwide protest against the NEET paper leak, Dipke asserted that a large portion of the support came straight from regular people. He added, "It should be very clear. The people who came to the protests saw that people were donating us food. The people brought their own water bottles."

He alleged that "Some people from the Delhi Police came to us and said, 'We will provide you with water bottles, but do not reveal our identities.' They said some of their children were also preparing for NEET, and they were sympathetic towards the cause, and that's why they wanted to give us water bottles."

Following Kapil Sibal's announcement of a Rs 1 crore legal aid fund for demonstrators detained during the anti-NEET paper leak campaign, the CJP's finances have come under closer scrutiny.

The RTI activist has also questioned the Election Commission of India about the CJP's legal standing and requested that Sibal's assistance be investigated.

In addition to Dipke, Vaishnavi Gaur, a spokesman for the CJP, retaliated against the RTI activist by accusing him of singling out a private person. She posted on her social media, "Those filing RTIs over a private individual's education expenses should also look at the PM CARES Fund. Modi ji will forgive you, don't worry."

Furthermore, the CJP rejected the complaints as politically motivated as concerns about the organisation's finances and legal standing grew.