Hopes and fears compete as Delhi students join CJP’s protest for education reforms
A man holds a poster of Mahatma Jyotirao Phule during a Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) protest at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on May 6, 2026. | Photo credit: ANI
Students from a number of colleges in Delhi, including those from Delhi University, Jawaharlal Nehru University and Jamia Millia Islamia, turned out for the first protest organized by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), which calls itself “India’s satirical political movement”.
Many students said they were there to support the protesters’ demand — the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan amid numerous controversies and examination irregularities — but were yet to decide how they wanted to join the movement itself.
Righting wrongs
Jantar Mantar in central Delhi was teeming with students and youth carrying placards and banners. “Cockroaches don’t destroy lives, BJP does,” read one slogan. “Dharmendra Pradhan must resign,” said another. Another poster featured ministers whose children are studying in foreign universities, saying: “Our future has escaped, their future is secured.
A Delhi University (DU) student carrying roses said the flowers were “for the movement” and that she was there to protest against paper leaks and exam irregularities. Krishna Agarwal, who studies at DU’s Shri Ram College of Commerce, said it was his first protest and he was there to see what students could do to redress grievances, citing “paper leaks and problems with the education system”.
No CJP support yet
Many of the students at the protest were affiliated with student organizations but said they were present as “individuals”. Among the student outfits that turned out in large numbers for the protest was the All India Students’ Association (AISA). However, organization officials clarified that their support for the cause does not necessarily mean support for the CJP, adding that they will wait for the movement to develop before planning a future course of action.
Current JNU Students’ Union President Aditi Mishra, who is also associated with AISA, expressed her solidarity. She was one of the five JNU students who were rusticated and barred from the campus for two semesters for alleged vandalism. “There is a diverse crowd here today: there are so many students, including school students, and people who have turned up with photos of Dr BR Ambedkar. We hope the momentum will continue and we can bring down the stronghold of the ruling party,” she said.
Concerns about AAP links
Some student leaders at the protest said they were present as “spectators” and feared “the movement’s connection to and support from the Aam Aadmi Party”.
Shortly after the protest ended, AAP supremo and former Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal expressed his solidarity in a post on X. “The cockroach movement is an expression of the immense anger and frustration felt by the youth of this country. Rather than calling them anti-national, the Modi government should address their issues. AAP supports their demands. The Prime Minister must immediately remove the Education Minister.”
Bhim, a PhD student at DU who is associated with the Krantikari Yuva Sangathan (KYS), said he supports education reform but is unsure of the broader movement’s goals. “It remains to be seen whether it will remain limited to issues like paper leakage or touch other issues like unemployment. To be an all-India movement, it will have to include other sections of society like farmers, domestic workers and hygienists and many more.”
On the first day (June 5, 2026) of The Hindu Huddle 2026 held in Bengaluru, participants expressed their thoughts on the ‘Cockroach Janta Party’. Watch below:
Published – 06 Jun 2026 21:29 IST