Will Cockroach Janta Party Spark Nepalese and Bangladeshi Gen Z Protest in India? Founder Abhijeet Dipke answers

Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), a satirical political collective that emerged last week, literally broke the internet.

The platform, which started as a joke after Chief Justice of India Surya Kant described young, unemployed Indians as “like cockroaches”, has already generated more than six thousand registrations with more Instagram followers than the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the world’s largest political party in terms of physical membership.

Read also | Cockroach Janta Party is now beyond a joke, says founder Abhijeet Dipke

The campaign was launched by 30-year-old Abjijeet Dipke, a recent public relations graduate from Boston University in the US, shortly after CJI Kant’s remark, which he later elaborated on.

As the campaign grew online and gained support from mostly young people on social media platforms, many in India began to compare it to the Gen Z-led protests that toppled governments in Sri Lanka, Nepal and Bangladesh in recent years.

Read also | Who is Abhijeet Dipke? The brain behind the viral ‘Cockroach Janta Party’ campaign

Founder Dipke responded to these comparisons by issuing a clarification.

“Many journalists have asked me whether this GenZ movement will turn into what happened in Nepal or Bangladesh,” Dipke wrote in X.

“Let me be absolutely clear, do not insult or belittle India’s GenZ with such comparisons. The youth of this country is far more mature, aware and politically aware than many give credit for. They understand their constitutional rights and will express their dissent through peaceful and democratic means,” he said.

The manifesto of the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), which the party describes as “secular, socialist, democratic, lazy”, includes demands such as a ban on post-retirement Rajya Sabha seats for chief justices, 50 percent reservation for women in Parliament without increasing the strength of the house and a 20-year ban on cross-dressing.

The youth in this country are far more mature, aware and politically aware than many give them credit for.

The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) manifesto, which the party describes as “secular, socialist, democratic, lazy”, includes demands such as a ban on post-retirement Rajya Sabha seats for chief justices, 50 percent reservation for women in Parliament without increasing the strength of the house, and a 20-year ban on cross-dressing.

“And please don’t humiliate them. Many of these young people are far more educated and informed than those currently running the government,” Dipke said.

What happened in Nepal, Bangladesh?

In September 2025, large-scale anti-corruption protests organized mostly by Gen Z students took place across Nepal. The situation escalated, with protests against public officials and vandalism of government and political buildings taking place across the country.

On 9 September 2025, Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli resigned along with several cabinet ministers. In March, a new government led by former rapper Balendra Shah came to power in Nepal.

In August 2024, protests against the government’s controversial labor quota system began in Bangladesh and turned into nationwide riots after a crackdown by the authorities.

Nearly 300 people were killed within weeks in one of the most violent phases of Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s 15-year rule. Hasina has left the nation and a new government is in place in Bangladesh under the leadership of Tarique Rahman.