Cockroach party takes to the streets in India, first protest with young people

Hundreds of young students gathered in New Delhi for the first street protest organised by the 'Cockroach People's Party' against alleged irregularities in recent examinations. Holding paper beetle masks and leaflets, the protesters demanded the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, who has been criticised for irregularities, including the leaking of information on exam tests to enter medical and high school faculties.

"We want the government to take responsibility," Utkarsh Raj, an aspiring medical student, told Afp at the protest site guarded by police officers in riot gear. 'How is it possible that exam papers are leaked in this country? How can this be right?" added Raj, 16. The protesters were led by Abhijeet Dipke, a 30-year-old Boston University graduate who arrived in New Delhi from the US today. His parody party, the 'Cockroach Janta Party' (CJP), a pun on cockroaches and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Hindu nationalist-oriented Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), has gained millions of followers on social media since its launch last month. The movement was born after the Chief Justice of India, Surya Kant, compared young people criticising the government to 'cockroaches' and 'vermin' during a hearing, sparking outrage among young people. "The youth of the country will no longer be afraid of anyone, they will fight," Dipke, former political communication strategist of the opposition Aam Aadmi Party, told supporters present at the rally. "The cockroaches are not afraid of anything and they never die," Dipke added. The popularity of the CJP has soared, thanks to the slogan 'a political front for the youth, by the youth, for the youth'.

"India deserves better management of such crucial examinations by the government," said Sarthak, a 20-year-old who only gave his name to Afp. Last month, the authorities abolished the national medical entrance examination after investigators discovered a leak of question papers. Indian media reported cases of suicide among teenagers following the National Eligibility Entrance Test (NEET) fiasco, one of the most competitive examinations in the country. This came on top of another scandal related to the online test marking system taken by nearly two million high school students. "Young people have to take these exams and these assessment systems cannot be allowed to completely lose credibility," said Sapan Gyan, 52, who accompanied her children to the protest. Despite rapid economic growth, millions of people in India still struggle to find stable, well-paid work, fuelling discontent among young people. According to the International Labour Organisation, youth unemployment in India, for those aged between 15 and 24, is around 16%. In recent years, some of India's neighbouring countries, including Bangladesh and Nepal, have witnessed youth movements against corruption and political apathy that have led to the downfall of incumbent governments.