Party founder Abhijeet Dipke says movement will consult supporters before deciding on political ambitions<\/p>\n
Abhijeet Dipke, head of the Cockroach Janta Party celebrates with supporters after the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi, India, July 25, 2026. PHOTO: REUTERS <\/p>\n
India’s\u00a0Gen-Z\u00a0Cockroach\u00a0Janta\u00a0Party, whose recent protest against exam paper leaks<\/a> claimed a rare ministerial scalp, has no immediate plans to enter electoral politics, its founder told Reuters <\/em>on Tuesday.<\/p>\n Abhijeet Dipke spearheaded demonstrations that spread nationwide from Delhi, forcing Prime Minister Narendra\u00a0Modi’s education minister to resign<\/a>, and spotlighting young people’s worries about high jobless rates despite rapid economic growth.<\/p>\n “We want to consult\u00a0Gen\u00a0Z on the issues they want us to focus on,” Dipke said in an interview at his home in the western state of Maharashtra, adding that supporters would meet for two days from Wednesday to decide their next steps.<\/p>\n “The purpose will be to form the agenda for the\u00a0Cockroach\u00a0Janta\u00a0Party\u00a0and discuss how we can take this social movement forward,” said Dipke, as he posed for photographs with visitors streaming into his two-storey family home.<\/p>\n Read:\u00a0<\/strong>Our Cockroach, Wangchuk, Jantar Mantar and Gen Z<\/a><\/p>\n He ruled out an immediate move into electoral politics, but said he would consider forming a\u00a0party\u00a0if “a majority of the people” wanted it, contesting\u00a0elections later in response to public demand.<\/p>\n “In India, I don’t think that forming a political\u00a0party\u00a0is a solution right now,” Dipke added. “What India needs is a public movement which will fight to bring back the trust and accountability in all the institutions.”<\/p>\n For now, he said, the CJP’s focus would be on amplifying the concerns of young Indians<\/a>, many of whom he said had lost faith in the country’s politicians, courts and media. “It’s really important to consult these young people and understand what they actually need,” added Dipke, who was recovering from typhoid caught during the sit-in protest in Delhi.<\/p>\n Bouquets stacked up at home<\/strong><\/p>\n After\u00a0the 36-day protest, Dipke returned to his home town of Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar, to be greeted by hundreds of supporters carrying bouquets lined up on the floor of his home.<\/p>\n Since his return in June following studies in the United States, Dipke become a sensation\u00a0after\u00a0his call to protest against medical exam leaks drew tens of thousands of young people into the streets<\/a> of Delhi last month.<\/p>\n Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan\u00a0resigned on July 25\u00a0after tear gas and baton charges failed to break up the protest movement.<\/p>\n In its wake, the government has backed harsher legal penalties against exam leaks and set up a panel<\/a> to review the examination system.<\/p>\n The high-stakes exams are a gateway to secure jobs for millions of young students, who can spend many years preparing in hopes of eventually securing financial stability for themselves and their families.<\/p>\n Dipke said he did not want to form a political\u00a0party\u00a0right away as he feared the government would try to discredit it by launching investigations against its leaders. He also ruled out supporting any political\u00a0party, despite efforts by\u00a0India’s opposition to exploit the rare opening offered by the protests<\/a> against\u00a0Modi.<\/p>\n Some caution may stem from the fact that in neighbouring Bangladesh, a Gen Z party formed\u00a0after\u00a0young people ousted long-term leader Sheikh Hasina<\/a> in 2024, fared poorly<\/a> in this year’s\u00a0elections.<\/p>\n Young voters could show anger at polls<\/strong><\/p>\n Analysts say\u00a0elections next year could offer the first test of young Indians’ anger as they cast ballots in the country’s most populous state of northern Uttar Pradesh, as well in the breadbasket state of Punjab and\u00a0Modi’s home state of Gujarat.<\/p>\n But wider\u00a0general\u00a0elections in 2029 could present a bigger risk for\u00a0Modi\u00a0if the CJP turns itself into a\u00a0party, analysts say.<\/p>\n “It is unlikely that this issue will cause significant damage to the BJP in state\u00a0elections, though it could become a bigger factor by 2029,” said political analyst Amitabh Tiwari, referring to the\u00a0general\u00a0elections.<\/p>\n