MUMBAI, July 21 -- Bhagwan Dipke, father of Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke, on Tuesday lashed out at the central government for its handling of the protests at Jantar Mantar, underlining that he was worried about his son after the police action but won't ask him to step back.

"He began this protest on his own, and at this stage we cannot ask him to withdraw the agitation," Dipke's father told HT on the phone from Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar district, previously known as Aurangabad.

Abhijeet's mother, Anita, also criticised the police action, questioning why students aged 18 to 20 were being treated as terrorists. "These children have been worried about their future and have been protesting peacefully for the past mont...