‘Careful’: A Gen Z Journalist in Nepal Writes an Open Letter to India’s ‘Cockroach’ Party

By Bal Krishna Sah, in Kathmandu

May 25, 2026

How are you doing, “cockroaches”? While you celebrate your success in gaining followers and dominating global headlines, how long can you rely on that? Do you realise you are being dismissed as a mere “meme movement” and a “page-based phenomenon”? This is a label you will likely lament, saying critics always need something to say, and this is simply what they have come up with.

However, this situation is incredibly serious, and the people of the Cockroaches Janta Party (CJP) need to be fully aware of the stakes. You have sparked a genuine sense of hope among Indian youth. Because of this responsibility, you should not engage in petty online banter or condescendingly blast the youth of neighbouring countries under the assumption that you are superior to them.

Let me remind you what Abhijeet Dipke, the founder of the CJP, wrote: “Many journalists have been asking me whether this GenZ movement will turn into what happened in Nepal or Bangladesh. Let me make this absolutely clear. Do not insult or underestimate the GenZ of India by making such comparisons.

“The youth of this country are far more mature, aware, and politically conscious than many give them credit for. They understand their constitutional rights and will express their dissent through peaceful and democratic means. And please, do not demean them. Many of these young people are far more educated and informed than those currently running the government.”

What began as a satirical movement has now evolved into a surreal political sensation. Perhaps this sudden influence explains why Dipke made such a bizarre and baffling statement, one dripping with a big-brother attitude toward the Nepal Gen Z movement. I wonder how different Dipke is from the successive governments in India whose false sense of superiority has always upset Nepal’s people and officials.

Further, the cockroaches are on the brink of greatness, but they will never actually get there if they are fighting for the wrong reasons. The spike in followers will eventually plateau, and the digital dopamine dance will come to an end. Once that happens, the online energy must translate into the tangible health of democracy in one of the greatest nations on earth.

What Dipke has achieved online is going to be extremely daunting for him to replicate on the ground as an organised movement. While he has successfully established CJP as a credible digital opposition, criticisms are finally beginning to emerge on a logical and factual basis.

For instance, in my recent interactions, several Indian nationals living in Nepal expressed deep scepticism regarding Dipke’s true intentions. A few even admitted that this is not the first time someone has triggered this kind of political outbreak. They argued that it has been happening in India for a long time, often with the West trying its hardest to pull the strings.

One respondent from Bangalore, who is currently working in Nepal, shared a poignant example: “What happened in Tamil Nadu? (Tamil Nadu recently witnessed a major political shift as actor-turned-politician C. Joseph Vijay became chief minister, leading his party TVK, the single largest party in the state), an outstanding example showing that public frustration against the establishment is entirely real. However, the emerging political force must be credible, not just someone who previously operated within Arvind Kejriwal’s meme shell.”

This represented one of the major concerns I encountered among Indians staying in Nepal. Asked whether they would actually vote for CJP if it transitioned into an official political party, they looked unsure and hesitant. As one respondent argued, “It could be possible in state elections, but definitely not in national elections.”

Another major vulnerability for CJP stems from the two Indias dynamic, famously described by comedian Vir Das during his Washington D.C. show in 2021. The fear is that CJP represents only one India, the elite India, rather than the real India.

What Dipke has started appears inaccessible to people in rural parts of India, where Instagram is not the first choice on their smartphones, and where even smartphones remain relatively scarce.

Dipke appears to be firmly trapped in what seems to me an elite bubble, one that completely overshadows the pressing issues of underperforming states like Bihar and several other marginalised regions of the country.

According to Dipke, journalists should not insult or underestimate the Gen Z of India by comparing them with the Nepali Gen Z movement because “the youth of India are far smarter, more aware, and more politically conscious.”

Before making such hubristic remarks, Dipke should learn a lesson from one of India’s most established political strategists and kingmakers, Prashant Kishor, who was ultimately defeated in Bihar despite his unmatched digital presence and massive social media following.

Kishor had launched a rigorous, almost two-year-long ground campaign alongside an unmatched digital presence supported by his tech-savvy team. He even claimed in interviews during the campaign that he had visited every village in Bihar during that period. Despite Kishor’s nearly two-year foot march, his party, Jan Suraaj, could not clinch a single seat in the Bihar election.

Dipke should also look closely at the declining political career of his former boss, Arvind Kejriwal, who once appeared to be a formidable future candidate for prime minister. Kejriwal serves as a textbook example for Dipke to understand how difficult it is to translate digital popularity into real democratic change in the world’s largest democracy.

Before lambasting the youth of other nations, particularly the Gen Z of Nepal, Dipke must first prove himself worthy of doing so. To stand on equal footing with youth who have brought about epochal and systemic change, Dipke needs to actively participate in elections, win a majority through democratic means, and establish a CJP-led government that delivers good governance and public accountability in India. Furthermore, all of this must be achieved peacefully, without bloodshed on the ground.

This is undeniably a herculean task in a country as vast and layered as India. But as a young journalist from Nepal who has witnessed epochal political change happen in less than 48 hours, I sincerely wish CJP the best in bringing out the best for India.

Until then, Dipke should know his limits and tread carefully before insulting the profound sacrifices made by youth in neighbouring countries in the struggle for democratic change.

I truly hope CJP dismantles the dark dualities plaguing India through the fresh movement it has created, rather than becoming another copy of a copy of a copy, an agenda-driven loop that Indian youth have repeatedly fallen into.

(Bal Krishna Sah is a political commentator and journalist based in Kathmandu. His work includes investigations for a BBC documentary on the Gen Z Revolution, reporting for WOZ, and several articles for The Himalayan Times, Nepal’s largest-selling English daily.)

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