CJP's 'School Thik Karo' targets Rajasthan's 600 roofless schools
Synopsis
CJP says 600 Rajasthan schools have no buildings and 85,000 classrooms are crumbling — and it won't stop visiting them until they're fixed. After an alleged assault on its members during a school visit, the organisation has submitted unedited video evidence to police, while rejecting accusations that its 'School Thik Karo' campaign is a political attack on the BJP.
Key Takeaways
CJP spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka on 22 August said the 'School Thik Karo' campaign will continue until schools are repaired.
Ranka cited 600 schools in Rajasthan functioning without permanent buildings and 85,000 classrooms in poor condition.
CJP claims a school in a Rajasthan village has been operating inside a buffalo shed for over two-and-a-half years .
Unedited video footage of an alleged assault on CJP members has been submitted to police and shared on social media.
Ranka directly addressed Rajasthan Education Minister Madan Dilawar , demanding to know which school the authorities were protecting.
CJP denied pursuing a political agenda against the BJP , saying its school visits are accountability-driven, not electoral.
Citizens for Justice and Peace (CJP) spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka on Saturday, 22 August declared that the organisation's 'School Thik Karo' campaign would press on across India, demanding infrastructure accountability from governments of all political stripes. Ranka firmly rejected claims that the initiative carried any electoral motive, framing it instead as a civic push to fix a documented crisis in public school infrastructure.
The Infrastructure Crisis in Numbers
Ranka directed sharp questions at the Rajasthan government, citing figures that paint a stark picture of neglect. He noted that 600 schools in the state are reportedly functioning without permanent buildings, while 85,000 classrooms are in poor condition. 'The question should not be what CJP will do in 48 hours; the question should be when the government will repair these schools,' he said, adding that children deserve better than the conditions currently on offer.
The Alleged Buffalo-Shed School
The flashpoint for the latest controversy was a school in a Rajasthan village that CJP claims has been operating inside a buffalo shed for the past two-and-a-half years. Ranka said he had personally visited the school the previous year and documented its condition on video. He described a tin structure at risk of collapse, with buffaloes and fodder still present on the premises. Addressing Rajasthan Education Minister Madan Dilawar directly, Ranka asked which school the authorities were trying to protect and called for an immediate end to what he termed 'hooliganism'.
Alleged Assault and Video Evidence
Ranka also responded to reports of an alleged assault on CJP members in a Rajasthan village during a school visit. He said unedited video footage of the incident had been shared on social media platforms, including X and Instagram, and had also been submitted to the police. 'These are unedited videos; we don't have any narrative,' he said, adding that the faces of the alleged assailants were visible and that they could be identified and arrested. He also stated that if any evidence existed against CJP members, it too should be made public.
Denial of Political Agenda
CJP's campaign has drawn accusations of targeting the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Rajasthan. Ranka rejected this outright. 'We are not here to ask for votes. We are not doing politics against the BJP,' he said, insisting that the organisation's school visits were driven by the documented condition of public education infrastructure, not by partisan calculations. He added that CJP would continue visiting schools across India until the repairs were carried out. This comes amid a broader national conversation about the state of government school infrastructure, with multiple states facing similar scrutiny from civil society groups.
Point of View
85,000 deteriorating classrooms — are not new allegations; they reflect data that state governments have themselves acknowledged in various audit reports. What is new is a civil society organisation willing to make those numbers uncomfortable through physical visits and video documentation. The BJP's apparent discomfort with the campaign, including the alleged assault, risks making the optics worse: it shifts the story from CJP's methods to the government's response. Rajasthan has changed ruling parties more than once in recent memory, yet school infrastructure has remained a persistent failure across administrations. Ranka's insistence that the campaign targets 'all governments' is worth taking at face value — and worth holding him to.
NationPress
22 Aug 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What is CJP's 'School Thik Karo' campaign?
'School Thik Karo' is a campaign by Citizens for Justice and Peace (CJP) that involves visiting government schools across India to document poor infrastructure and demand accountability from state governments. The campaign is not affiliated with any political party, according to CJP spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka.
How bad is the school infrastructure crisis in Rajasthan?
According to CJP spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka, 600 schools in Rajasthan are functioning without permanent buildings, and 85,000 classrooms are in poor condition. One school in a Rajasthan village has reportedly been operating inside a buffalo shed for over two-and-a-half years.
What happened during the alleged assault on CJP members in Rajasthan?
CJP members were allegedly assaulted during a school visit in a Rajasthan village. Ranka said unedited video footage of the incident is available on social media platforms including X and Instagram, and has been submitted to the police. He stated the footage shows the faces of the alleged assailants.
Is CJP targeting the BJP with this campaign?
CJP has denied targeting the BJP specifically. Spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka said the organisation seeks accountability from all governments and is not engaged in electoral politics. He stated that CJP representatives visited the area because a school was allegedly functioning in a buffalo shed, not for partisan reasons.
Who is Rajasthan Education Minister Madan Dilawar?
Madan Dilawar is the Education Minister of Rajasthan. CJP spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka addressed him directly during his statement, questioning which school the authorities were attempting to protect and calling for an end to what he described as interference with the campaign.
