Jantar Mantar just a trailer: CJP's Abhijeet Dipke warns of bigger protests

A day after the Cockroach Janta Party's (CJP) first major street protest at Delhi's Jantar Mantar, founder Abhijeet Dipke thanked supporters for participating in the demonstration and signalled that the movement was 'only a trailer.'

"Yesterday, thousands of us made history. Our peaceful protest at Jantar Mantar showed the government a trailer of what cockroaches are capable of when we unite," read his tweet.

He also mentioned that most people who joined the campaign yesterday had never participated in a protest before, but felt 'emboldened by the collective presence' to express their sheer anger and frustration at the education system.

"Change cannot happen if we don’t make our voices heard," he added. "The government cannot touch a unified, peaceful movement. Us cockroaches don’t ever need to fear them."

On Saturday, during his address, Dipke had urged Pradhan to step down by 5 pm, but later announced a 7-day deadline for action by the minister or the government.

"This doesn't end here. Dharmendra Pradhan has wronged an entire generation. If he is not removed or does not step down within the next 7 days, we will be forced to continue our protest on the ground," he concluded mentioning that he will address on an Instagram live later on Sunday.

'DHARMENDRA PRADHAN MUST GO'

The demonstration at Delhi's Jantar Mantar was organised to demand the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged examination irregularities and recruitment-related issues. Students, competitive exam aspirants, parents, young professionals and activists joined the protest, with some travelling from other states to participate. One protester said he had come from Nagpur in Maharashtra to raise his voice against what he described as systemic failures in the education and recruitment system.

Amid chants of "Dharmendra Pradhan must go", protesters wearing cockroach masks gathered under heavy security, carrying books, flowers and the national flag. Addressing the crowd, CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke accused the government of ignoring student concerns while focusing on suppressing dissent online.

PROTEST AMID HEIGHTENED SECURITY

The protest marked a major milestone for the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), which began as an online movement before evolving into a nationwide youth-led campaign. Initially launched as a satirical response to remarks made by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, the movement has since expanded its focus to issues such as exam paper leaks, recruitment delays, unemployment and institutional accountability.

The demonstration triggered a massive security deployment across Delhi, with more than 1,000 police personnel stationed at Jantar Mantar and other strategic locations across the city. Security was tightened at airports, railway stations, interstate bus terminals and border entry points, while around 40 companies of paramilitary forces were deployed to assist Delhi Police in maintaining law and order, according to a PTI report.

Additional security arrangements were also made around the residence of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.

'STRUGGLE BUT CHANGE YOUR NAME'

Haryana’s Minister, Anil Vij, referring to his recent comment on social media platform X (formerly Twitter), said that in a democracy every individual has the right to struggle and express his or her views. In this context, he advised the office-bearers of the Cockroach Janata Party, saying, “This is a democracy—everyone has the right to struggle, but you should change your name.”

Vij had written in his post that even a small child crushes a cockroach with a slipper on seeing it, so he felt it is better to change the name.