Supporters of India’s Cockroach Janta Party protested in New Delhi on Saturday with a unique demonstration. They banged steel plates with spoons, demanding the resignation of the education minister over allegations of exam irregularities and paper leaks. This protest occurred near Parliament and involved hundreds of students and young supporters.
The protest heightened pressure on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government and sought to gather wider support across India. Heavy security measures were in place, with police using cameras and drones to monitor the situation. Protesters displayed placards and used banging plates, mocking Modi’s previous call during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic for people to step outside and bang utensils in solidarity with health workers.
CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke, a political strategist and student at Boston University, encouraged supporters on social media to bring plates and spoons. He stated, “There is a virus called Dharmendra Pradhan that has to be removed,” highlighting the party’s demand for the minister’s resignation and openness to dialogue if this were to occur.
This is just the beginning. If Dharmendra Pradhan doesn’t resign or if no action is taken regarding this issue, this protest will not end here,said CJP supporter Deepak Kumar.
The protest was sparked by the exam paper leak for a nationwide medical program, which surfaced through the social media app Telegram. This led authorities to postpone the exam and temporarily ban Telegram in India. The exam is rescheduled for Sunday, with the government stating the leak is under investigation.
Vicky Kumar, a student, expressed his frustration, saying, “We study in poverty, live in poverty for 24 hours every day, for years at length, and after that our exam papers get leaked. Will I not get angry at this?”
The Cockroach Janta Party began gaining attention in May after a controversial remark by Supreme Court Judge Surya Kant, who compared unemployed youth to “cockroaches.” This sparked outrage and led supporters to embrace the term as a symbol of resilience. The movement now includes over 22 million followers on Instagram, expanding its focus to issues such as unemployment, living costs, and government accountability.
The CJP combines humor with political critique, with supporters calling themselves “unemployed and chronically online.” Videos and memes criticizing unemployment, corruption, and political dysfunction have gained millions of views, leading to the creation of parody CJP accounts adopting the cockroach as a satirical political symbol.
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