Thousands of protesters gathered at New Delhi’s Jantar Mantar, holding flowers and wearing cockroach masks, demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan and accountability for continued misgovernance in the conduct of examinations. Protesters said repeated failures in the examination system have pushed young people’s futures into uncertainty. At the centre of their grievances was the recent NEET paper leak which has caused widespread distress among aspirants and contributed to several student suicides.

The protest was called by the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP), a newly emerged youth-led satirical movement that began online on social media and has now moved to street demonstrations. The movement was founded by Abhijeet Dipke, a U.S.-based Indian student and strategist, after India’s Chief Justice reportedly referred to critics as “cockroaches” and “parasites” during a court hearing. Dipke and his supporters turned the insult into a symbol of survival, resilience and defiance, arguing that young people may be dismissed or dehumanised, but cannot be erased.

We spoke to participants at the protest site, which included not just the Gen Z but also millennials and older people, to know their motivations for joining this movement.