New delhi: The 'cockroach movement' in India has begun its operation. The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), a social movement led by young people (Gen Z) in India, escalated from an online satire into a large-scale real-world protest on Saturday (June 6), with its main demand being the resignation of the Minister of Education.
According to Thai News Agency, hundreds of protesters, wearing cockroach masks, carrying Indian flags, and bringing textbooks, gathered for the first major demonstration at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi yesterday (June 6) to symbolically express their demand for education rights and equality. Abhijeet Dipke, 30, a Boston University graduate and founder of the online movement, flew in from the United States to lead the protest. CJP leaders held a press conference stating they were giving the government seven days to dismiss Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan or for him to resign. If no action is taken within seven days, the "cockroach" protest movement will expand and spread nationwide.
The calls for India's Education Minister's resignation stem from dissatisfaction among students and young people following scandals involving fraud and leaks of several national exams, particularly the NEET (Needs to Learn and Appropriate Education) medical entrance exam, which was leaked and forced to postpone. Serious irregularities in the Education Board's online exam grading system have also impacted the future and job prospects of over 2.3 million students and young people. For India's middle class, education is the only path to a better life. With the lack of transparency in the system, their patience has run out.
The beginning of the "cockroach" movement was marked by the term 'cockroach' being coined after Surya Kant, the Chief Justice of India, made a derogatory remark about unemployed young people who were criticizing those in power, comparing them to "parasites" and "cockroaches" during a court hearing in May. This statement angered many young people, leading Abhijit Dipke to retaliate by creating a website and social media accounts satirizing the "Cockroach Janta Party" (CJP), a name that parodies India's ruling party (BJP) led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The movement aimed to be a voice for lazy, unemployed, and forgotten youth. It started as a parody account producing memes on social media before becoming a symbol of resistance. In less than a month, the group's Instagram account surpassed 22 million followers, more than double the BJP's followers.
Although the movement started as satire, the demands and voices of the "Cockroach Movement" are shaking Modi's government. Beyond the corruption scandal surrounding the Ministry of Education exams, young people are also affected by unemployment. India has a population under 35 years old that is nearly 65%, yet the Modi government has failed to create enough jobs. Unemployment rates among Gen Z are soaring, with an estimated 40% of new graduates unemployed. The Cockroach Movement has thus become a platform for young people to express their frustration at being abandoned by the older generation of leaders or politicians in power.
In the past, the Modi government has often used drastic measures to control protests, but this movement is driven by the internet, memes, and Gen Z-style communication that spreads like wildfire. Even though the government blocked the group's accounts on X platforms and accused the movement of receiving money from Pakistan or being anti-nationalist, it couldn't stop the surge in Instagram followers and the formation of real-life gatherings.
What the Modi government fears most is a reflection of youth movements in neighboring countries like Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka, where the power of young people mobilizing through social media has successfully ousted and overthrown corrupt or mismanaged governments in the past.
The events reflect how the "cockroach movement" is transforming itself from a "joke" into a "political pressure group" that is shaking the foundations of power and demanding accountability from the Indian government like never before in decades.