Cockroach Janata Party escalates campaign against Dharmendra Pradhan, Pune protest set for June 11

Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) founder Abhijeet Dipke on Monday said the party will stage a protest in Pune on June 11 demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged irregularities in examinations and recruitment tests, PTI reported.

"Let's meet in Pune! Hail Maharashtra!" Dipke posted on X.

"Cockroaches will demand Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan's resignation in Maharashtra's educational capital Pune. How many Pune cockroaches will join?" a post on CJP's X handle said.

Dipke has said he will launch protests across multiple states and cities if Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan does not resign by June 13 over alleged irregularities in examinations and recruitment tests.

What did Dipke say about Gen Z-led protests in Nepal, Bangladesh?

Speaking on Sunday about recent Gen Z-led protests in Nepal and Bangladesh, Dipke stressed that the CJP movement has remained peaceful and should not be compared with demonstrations in neighbouring countries. He also asserted that the CJP is exclusively a Gen Z movement and will not align with any political party.

The Cockroach Janata Party had earlier staged a protest at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on June 6, demanding Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation over alleged paper leak cases across the country.

Asked about recent Gen Z protests in Nepal and Bangladesh, Dipke stressed on Sunday that the CJP movement has been peaceful and cannot be compared with demonstrations that occurred in the neighbouring countries. The CJP is exclusively for Gen Z, and it won't be associated with any political party, he asserted.

He also spoke about plans for the next phase of agitation in the national capital. "If Dharmendra Pradhan doesn't resign even after protests in states, we will not have any option but to agitate again. Students from various corners of the country will then come together in New Delhi and agitate peacefully."

"We will not stop till Pradhan resigns. He should take moral responsibility for ruining the future of over one crore students," Dipke said.

Earlier, at a press conference here, Dipke said the CJP movement, which began as an online satirical platform over the "cockroach" terminology, cannot be equated with agitations that had taken place in some neighbouring countries.

He was asked if he thinks the "revolution" that took place in neighbouring countries due to Gen Z can also take place in India.

"I don't want to compare (the agitation) with neighbouring countries because here (in India) there is a system. But a narrative is going on to compare with what has happened in Bangladesh and Nepal. They also say that we want to wreak havoc in the country," Dipke replied.

Launched as an online campaign in May, the CJP quickly amassed more than 22 million followers on Instagram and urged young people to join the protest in the national capital on Saturday over alleged irregularities in examinations and recruitment tests, in what appeared to be a show of strength.

At Jantar Mantar, protesters carrying posters demanding Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation wore cockroach masks as part of the demonstration.

Apart from calling for the education minister’s resignation, protesters also raised slogans urging the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to stop engaging in “Hindu-Muslim” politics, while also chanting “Bharat Mata ki Jai” slogans.

(With inputs from agencies)