The protest saw the participation of students, lawyers, doctors, filmmakers, and professionals from every walk of life. (Image credits: Kalyani Lad)By Kalyani LadDespite the rain, thousands of citizens from across Pune marched from Shaniwar Wada, Lal Mahal to the Collector’s office to voice support for Cockroach Janta Party.The protest saw the participation of students, lawyers, doctors, filmmakers, and professionals from every walk of life. What set this march apart was its complete peace and organisation. Despite the large turnout, there was no chaos and no sloganeering that crossed the line, and no disruption to public order.“I’m an educationist because I teach in multiple education institutes, including a medical college and such a paper leak is shameful,” said Sonali Talavlikar, a doctor and one of the attendants at the protest.“I am here to support CJP because the education system needs to be improvised. There’s lot of corruption that goes on in the system. The Education Minister should take accountability and make necessary changes,” Sonali Surve, an MPSC aspirant, said.“Learning should be feasible in this kind of economy. Resources provided by the government are not enough for students. They can do better,” said Varun, a film maker.The route was lined with volunteers offering water. Police personnel were deployed at every junction and traffic was managed smoothly. An ambulance was kept on standby as a precaution.Story continues below this ad“Neet is not only the issue, there are several others that the government needs to address. So we are here to agitate against the government. They are responding now but they are not sure if Dharmendra Pradhan is resigning, said Gayatri, who runs a marketing agency.Students and children formed a large part of the crowd, walking alongside senior citizens and professionals.“We are here for the future. People from very humble backgrounds are troubled the most when such paper leaks happen,” said Netra, a student.“There are many things GOI needs to change. Paper leak is one of the thing. One resignation won’t change anything, Systemic change is needed,” Badal, a corporate employee, said.Story continues below this ad“The Government is responding now. We are welcoming the stand they are taking, but grievance redressal should be more sooner,” he added.“After what happened at the Delhi Parliament protest, democracy is under question somewhere. They need to take student issues seriously,” said Gauri Chavan, a law student.Police officials praised the cooperation. Barricades were respected, and the crowd moved in formation without blocking emergency routes.By the time the march reached the Collector’s Office, it had sent a strong message without creating a single incident. Volunteers helped cleanup and disperse the crowd in an orderly fashion.