Veteran actor Shabana Azmi joined the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP)’s ‘Sansad Chalo’ march on Monday, July 20, extending her support to the ongoing protest over the NEET paper leak controversy. A day earlier, she had reached Delhi’s Jantar Mantar to stand with students demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.The march is being spearheaded by CJP leader Abhijeet Dipke and activist Sonam Wangchuk’s wife, Gitanjali Angmo, while Wangchuk remains on an indefinite hunger strike at Safdarjung Hospital after being forcibly removed from the protest site by the Delhi Police on Saturday.A number of film personalities have also expressed solidarity with the movement, urging that the demonstrations continue peacefully.Azmi, 75, walked alongside students and fellow protesters as they made their way towards Parliament. Addressing PTI, she said, “We are here to hold a peaceful protest. This is a right guaranteed by our Constitution. Mahatma Gandhi taught us the path of non-violence. We have no intention of resorting to violence.”The veteran actor also appealed to the media to focus on the core issues rather than the presence or absence of celebrities at the protest. “You are only worried about the fact that Bollywood celebrities are not present at the March. You don’t worry about the absence of industrialist, all the businessmen. When you ask these question, you sidelining the cause and creating unnecessary controversy. You should support those who are marching for this cause, rather than diluting the matter,” she told the media.Speaking to Red Mike, Azmi revealed that both she and her husband, lyricist Javed Akhtar, had written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, requesting that the government initiate a dialogue with the protesters. “Maine jo hai, Pradhan Mantri ko khat likha. Javed saab ne khat likha ki dekhiye aap sirf ek dialogue initiate kariye, press ke paas hum nahi ja rahe. Hum isko ek public matter nahi banayenge, hum sirf Rajya Sabha ke ex-sansad hain, toh hum uss lihaaz se keh rahe hain, baat toh suniye. Pehle toh hume acknowledgement aaya ki 2 din main aapko jawab milega, 2 din main nahi aaya, 3 din main nahi aaya, 4 din main nahi aaya toh phir paanchwe din hum yahan aa gaye (I wrote a letter to the Prime Minister. Javed saab also wrote a letter saying, ‘Please just initiate a dialogue. We are not going to the press. We won’t turn this into a public issue. As a former member of the Rajya Sabha, I’m making this request in that capacity. At least hear us out.’ At first, we received an acknowledgment saying that we would get a response within two days. But there was no reply in two days, nor in three, nor in four. So, on the fifth day, we came here ourselves).”Actors Kavita Kaushik, best known for her role as Chandramukhi Chautala in FIR, and Chak De! India actor Vidya Malavade also voiced support for the students and appealed to authorities to allow peaceful demonstrations.Sharing a video on Instagram, Kavita addressed the Delhi Police with an emotional message. She said, “Delhi Police, I want to make a request to you. You all have families too—parents, children, siblings and relatives. God forbid, if they ever face a medical emergency, you would want them to be treated by a genuine, competent doctor and not a fake one. That is exactly why these students are protesting. So, whatever happens, please do not raise your hand against the children or the citizens of my country. Do not hurt them. That is all I have to say. Do not display your might before them.”Vidya Malavade, too, took to Instagram to express her concern over the situation. “It is heart-breaking to see what is happening in our country right now. The way Sonam Wangchuk ji has been treated is not just frustrating but also very scary. But the dignity and grace that Gitanjali ma’am is showing is the very foundation on which this great country is built,” she wrote.She further added, “Isn’t it every citizen’s birthright to protest peacefully against being wronged? It is unfathomable to understand how these young students have been driven to take their own lives. These students deserve dialogue and justice, and I stand by them. Chak De India!”