Kathmandu, May 21: A satirical online campaign launched in India under the name Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) has witnessed an extraordinary surge on social media, reportedly gaining more than 13.5 million Instagram followers within five days.
The campaign appears to have evolved into a wider digital movement following criticism and satire linked to remarks allegedly associated with India’s Chief Justice Surya Kant. Emerging from online reactions, the Cockroach Janata Party has rapidly spread across Instagram, X, TikTok, and multiple websites
According to information shared through the campaign’s website, more than 200,000 people have registered for membership. Its rapid online growth has led many to describe it as more than a typical social media trend, portraying it instead as a broader digital movement.
The campaign’s founder has been identified as Abhijeet Dipke, a public relations student at Boston University in the United States. He reportedly stated that the initiative is not a conventional political party but rather a digital platform created to express the frustrations and satire of young people.
Images and videos have also surfaced showing supporters in Delhi wearing “cockroach” costumes while conducting a clean-up campaign along the Yamuna River, which participants described as a symbolic awareness activity.
Meanwhile, a manifesto released by the campaign has also become a topic of discussion online. It reportedly includes several controversial proposals related to state institutions, the electoral system, and media regulation.
According to IndiaToday, the account, operating under the handle @cockroachjantaparty, crossed the 10-million mark on Thursday. In contrast, the BJP’s official Instagram account @bjp4india currently has around 8.7 million followers, while the Congress’s account @incindia remains ahead with roughly 13.2 million followers. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), founded in 2012, has approximately 1.9 million followers.
Both politicians and vocal non-politician backers or sympathisers of the Cockroach Janta Party include prominent YouTubers and social media influencers like Dhruv Rathee, veteran activist-lawyer Prashant Bhushan. TMC leaders Mahua Moitra and Kirti Azad have also expressed their willingness to join the Cockroach Janta Party.
Senior advocate and activist Prashant Bhushan called for the CJP to use its followers’ surge to raise the issue of the NEET paper leak.
Who is Abhijeet Dipke?
The CJP’s campaign first surfaced online on May 16 as a satirical youth movement responding to the controversial remarks of the Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant regarding sections of Indian youth.
During a hearing on May 15, the CJI referred to a lawyer’s social media conduct, saying, “There are youngsters, like cockroaches, who don’t get any employment or have any place in the profession. Some of them become media, some of them become social media, RTI activists, and other activists, and they start attacking everyone.”
These remarks sparked massive outrage on social media and gave birth to the CJP, a campaign headed by its founder Abhijeet Dipke.
“I think the remarks were more triggering because they came from the Chief Justice of India, who is the custodian of the Constitution, which grants us freedom of expression. Someone who is there to safeguard our freedom of expression is comparing us to cockroaches and parasites just for putting forward our opinions. That was the more hurtful part,” Dipke said in an exclusive interview with India Today TV on Wednesday.
Dipke further argued that had similar remarks come from political leaders, the reaction may not have been as intense. “Had this comment been made by anybody else from the ruling party, which they normally do, it wouldn’t have caused such a stir. But it came from someone who is supposed to protect our freedom of expression,” Dipke added.
However, the CJI later issued a clarification of the cockroach statement on May 16, saying that he was “misquoted by a section of media”.
“I am pained to read how a section of the media has misquoted my oral observations made during the hearing of a frivolous case yesterday. What I had specifically criticised were those who have entered professions like the Bar (legal profession) with the aid of fake and bogus degrees. Similar people have sneaked into the media, social media, and other noble professions as well, and hence, they are like parasites. It is totally baseless to suggest that I criticised the youth of our nation,” CJI Surya Kant said in his clarification.
But the clarification did not settle down, and the CJP’s social media outrage continued to battle the system.
The CJP that initially appeared to be another fleeting meme page within days evolved into a full-fledged digital movement tapping into frustrations around unemployment, exam paper leaks, political accountability, and what many young users describe as a widening disconnect between institutions and Gen Z concerns.
Describing itself as “a political front of the youth, by the youth, for the youth,” the page rapidly gained traction among younger social media audiences. Within just 78 hours of launch, the account reportedly crossed 3 million followers before surging past 10 million in less than five days. This pace of growth in social media is rarely seen in India’s political social media landscape.
