Cockroach Janta Party founder Abhijeet Dipke, who spearheaded the Jantar Mantar protest against Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over paper leaks, on Saturday thanked Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant for allegedly calling the youth “cockroaches”.
“I would like to thank CJI Surya Kant,” the CJP founder told supporters, adding, “If he hadn’t called us cockroaches, I wouldn’t have come to India. This movement would not have started.”
The CJP founder’s message to the CJI came shortly after Pradhan announced his resignation.
Earlier this year, Dipke had founded the online satirical outfit in protest against CJI Surya Kant’s purported insult to India’s unemployed youth, allegedly calling them “cockroaches”.
The CJP gained massive traction online, gaining over 20 million followers on Instagram in less than a fortnight.
Days after the CJP’s formation, the NEET-UG 2026 examination paper got cancelled over paper leak allegations, triggering nationwide outrage.
Dipke, who was studying in the US until then, returned to India, and launched an agitation at Jantar Mantar, demanding Pradhan’s resignation.
His protest got a massive boost after renowned activist Sonam Wangchuk announced an indefinite hunger strike in support of the CJP protest.
Wangchuk’s forceful removal from Jantar Mantar and the alleged police brutality against students during their Parliament march proved to be the tipping point as the protest rapidly spread nationwide.
Sensing the growing discontent among the youth, the government announced a slew of measures, including fast-track courts for paper leak cases, but the students didn’t buy the assurances and continued to press for Pradhan’s resignation.
Earlier this week, the government managed to convince Wangchuk to end his hunger strike after 26 days, hoping it could weaken the CJP-led movement.
However, Dipke clarified that the protest will continue until all their demands are met. Pradhan’s resignation, Rs 1 crore compensation for NEET suicide victims, and action against police officials over the July 20 brutalities against students are the CJP’s key demands.