Pilot said the government was seeking to keep failures out of public view rather than address deteriorating buildings and other deficiencies. He demanded withdrawal of the directive, arguing that limiting journalists and members of the public from documenting conditions in schools was incompatible with democratic accountability.
The row intensified after members of the Cockroach Janta Party, or CJP, alleged that their team was assaulted while attempting to visit a government school at Rampura Kanwarpura in Jaipur district as part of its “School Thik Karo” campaign. CJP co-convener Ashutosh Ranka said the team had gone to examine conditions at a school that was allegedly functioning from inadequate premises.
A confrontation broke out involving the visiting group and local residents. CJP alleged that its members were assaulted and blamed BJP supporters, while residents disputed that account and objected to what they described as an attempt to politicise the school. BJP leaders rejected allegations that the party had organised any attack and accused the CJP of creating disturbances at educational institutions.
Pilot said violence could not be justified and argued that poor conditions at government schools should be exposed rather than concealed. He linked the dispute to wider concerns about deteriorating education infrastructure, pointing to deaths involving unsafe school buildings.
Seven children were killed in July 2025 when part of a government school building collapsed at Piplodi village in Jhalawar district. Scores of pupils were trapped when the roof gave way while students were gathering for morning prayers. Days later, a Class 1 pupil died after a school gate and its supporting structure collapsed in Jaisalmer district.
A statewide assessment conducted after the Jhalawar disaster found severe structural deficiencies across the government school network. The exercise covered more than 63,000 schools and identified nearly 87,000 classrooms as completely dilapidated. More than 5,600 schools were classified as entirely dilapidated, highlighting the scale of the infrastructure challenge confronting the state administration.
The issue remains active. An assessment in Bhilwara district has identified 116 government school buildings as unsafe, with dozens already demolished. The government has also moved ahead with plans involving new buildings for hundreds of schools and substantial expenditure on infrastructure, while officials have maintained that these projects form part of an existing programme rather than a response to political pressure.
The latest political dispute centres on an August 16 circular issued by the Directorate of Secondary Education in Bikaner. It requires outsiders to obtain permission from the principal or head of an institution before entering government school premises. Photography, videography, interviews, audio recording and live streaming involving pupils, teachers or school activities also require approval.
Visitors must enter their details in a register, while access to classrooms, laboratories, libraries, hostels and other areas used by students is subject to supervision. Government officials entering schools as part of their official responsibilities are exempt from the general permission requirement.
The administration has defended the rules on grounds of children’s privacy, dignity and safety. Education Minister Madan Dilawar has said the directive does not amount to an absolute prohibition on entry. Education officials have argued that schools are public institutions accountable to citizens but cannot operate as unrestricted public spaces.
That distinction has failed to satisfy the Congress, which says the requirement for prior approval could enable authorities to obstruct legitimate journalistic scrutiny. Former chief minister Ashok Gehlot has also sought withdrawal of the restrictions, while Rajasthan Congress president Govind Singh Dotasra has accused the government of attempting to suppress examination of school conditions.
The timing has added to the controversy. The circular was issued within hours of CJP announcing plans to inspect government schools across several districts, including Jaipur, Ajmer, Jodhpur, Udaipur, Dholpur, Bharatpur, Kota, Barmer and Hanumangarh.
CJP launched its “School Thik Karo” initiative on August 15, positioning poor school infrastructure as a public accountability issue. Its campaign has rapidly become entangled in the broader Congress-BJP confrontation, with ruling-party representatives questioning the organisation’s methods and motives.
