Supporters of the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) wear cockroach masks during a protest demanding the resignation of India's education minister over allegations of a leaked medical school entrance exam. [Getty Images]
Supporters of the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) wear cockroach masks during a protest demanding the resignation of India's education minister over allegations of a leaked medical school entrance exam. [Getty Images]

A youth political movement in India called the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) — formed in response to a derogatory remark by the country's chief justice — held its first street protest, drawing hundreds of supporters to the capital. Less than a month old, the group has already amassed more than 20 million followers on social media, putting the Indian government on edge.

Hundreds of CJP supporters gathered Sunday afternoon near the parliament building in New Delhi to demand the resignation of the education minister, according to AP and AFP. The demonstrators condemned a leak of exam questions ahead of the national medical school entrance test, which 2.2 million students across India sat last month.

Some participants wore paper cockroach masks and chanted slogans including "The cockroaches are coming" and "Dharmendra Pradhan must step down."

In a statement, the CJP said Pradhan must either resign voluntarily or be dismissed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi within a week, warning that "if no action is taken in the meantime, this movement will spread nationwide."

Organizers asked participants to bring Indian flags and books to the rally, saying the items symbolize every citizen's right to education and equal opportunity.

The protest reflects years of accumulated frustration over repeated cheating scandals and mismanagement in national examinations. Youth unemployment has added fuel: roughly 400 million of India's 1.4 billion people are between the ages of 15 and 29, and the urban youth unemployment rate stood at 14 percent as of April.

The CJP was founded on May 16, one day after it became widely known that Supreme Court Chief Justice Surya Kant had compared unemployed young people to cockroaches. Young people turned the insult into a political symbol, adopting the name "Cockroach Janata Party" as an act of defiance.

Abhijit Dipke, 30, who is said to come from one of India's lowest castes, founded the group. He previously worked in communications and strategy for the opposition Aam Aadmi Party before traveling to the United States to study at Boston University. He returned to India when the medical entrance exam controversy erupted and began organizing youth opinion, describing the effort as "a movement to change India's political discourse."

The group took its first steps into street politics after dominating social media feeds and local news headlines for weeks, winning broad support among India's Generation Z. The CJP's official Instagram account now has roughly 22.7 million followers — nearly three times the approximately 8.8 million followers of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Political analysts say the CJP has become the loudest online voice channeling anti-government sentiment driven by India's high youth unemployment rate.

‘탁 치니 억 하고 죽었다’ 대공분실 찾은 중학생들 “민주화 열망 느꼈다” [세상&]

‘탁 치니 억 하고 죽었다’ 대공분실 찾은 중학생들 “민주화 열망 느꼈다” [세상&]

[헤럴드경제=김용재 기자] “광주에서 택시 운전하실 때 어떤 기분이었을까요? 간첩으로 조작되어 고문받을 때 얼마나 무서웠을까요?” 지난 1일 오후 서울 용산구 민주화
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