Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) founder on Thursday described the death by suicide of MPSC aspirant Prathamesh Deshmukh as a “murder done by the system” and said the government must ensure that such incidents do not happen again, PTI reported.
said people were seeking reservation because, in his view, the government had failed to provide quality education and employment opportunities to the youth.
Deshmukh, 28, allegedly died by suicide in Pune. A note left by him mentioned that he had a debt of around ₹2.5 lakh, according to the report. He was a native of Paranda in Dharashiv and had been living in rented accommodation in Pune’s Navi Peth area while preparing for competitive examinations.
Dipke visited Khasapuri village in Dharashiv on Thursday and met Deshmukh’s grieving family.
Speaking to reporters afterwards, Dipke said Deshmukh had gone to Pune with the dream of securing a government job and helping his family overcome poverty.
“He borrowed money from friends to meet his expenses. But due to paper leaks and delayed results, pressure mounted on students. This (Deshmukh’s suicide) is system’s fault and it is a murder done by the system,” he alleged.
Dipke said Deshmukh took the extreme step after becoming frustrated with the system, unemployment and the financial difficulties faced by young people in rural areas.
According to Dipke, Deshmukh struggled to meet his expenses while living in Pune.
“Prathamesh stayed in Pune and used to have a meal only once a day due to his financial condition. According to his mother, Prathamesh used to say that he would come home in a government car, but unfortunately he was brought here in an ambulance yesterday. His father has already passed away,” Dipke said.
He said MPSC aspirants from rural areas face difficulties in meeting the costs of living in cities such as Pune.
“He (Deshmukh) had borrowed ₹2 lakh to ₹2.5 lakh from his friends… A youth had to end his life for this much amount. This is the condition of our youth in rural areas because there is no employment,” Dipke said.
Dipke also criticised the functioning of the MPSC, alleging that examinations are not conducted properly, results are delayed or improper and paper leaks take place.
“How will the youth from rural areas survive in a city like Pune? How will they pay the money required for library, food, rent and coaching? This is a question that haunts the youth from rural areas,” he said.
Dipke said Deshmukh had spent four years in Pune preparing for the examinations while cutting down on his expenses.
“He left the village with a dream to become an officer, then how can he return without cracking the exams? For this, he did everything that he could. He stayed there (in Pune) for four years by curtailing his expenses. There are thousands of youths like him,” he said.
On the reservation issue, Dipke claimed that people had lost faith in the government and were therefore seeking a constitutional remedy.
“The government cannot give good facilities. If they get good facilities, good schools and education and opportunities, why would anyone ask for reservation?” he said.
“People are asking for reservation because the government has completely failed in giving quality education and providing jobs. People have lost faith in the government so they are seeking constitutional remedies,” Dipke added.
Dipke said the CJP had previously extended support to the agitation by MPSC aspirants but would now participate in it.
“The government should be alert and incidents like (suicide by) Prathamesh should not recur as it cannot be tolerated any more,” he said.
“Till now, we extended our support to the MPSC aspirants who were agitating. But what I have seen here today, we cannot let such cases happen any further. Therefore we have decided to get into this agitation,” Dipke added.
