CJP protest faces growing online backlash (Dynamite News)
New Delhi: As the Cockroach Janata Party’s protest at Jantar Mantar continues to attract supporters from different parts of the country, the movement is now facing a growing wave of online opposition.
In recent days, several Instagram, YouTube and X pages with names such as “Hit the Cockroaches”, “Hit Cockroach Killer”, “Hit Janata Party” and “Hit CJP - Gen Z Murkh Nahi Hai” have surfaced. These accounts appear to be dedicated to mocking, questioning and countering the CJP protest and its leader, Abhijeet Dipke.
The online backlash reportedly began on the first day of the protest, when a man reached the venue carrying an insecticide spray and claimed he had come to “kill all cockroaches”, referring to the party’s name.
Since then, multiple social media posts and videos have targeted the protesters. Some accounts have mocked CJP supporters who were unable to explain the full forms of NEET and NTA, while others have directed criticism at female participants. The tone of several posts has triggered debate over whether the opposition is limited to political criticism or has crossed into personal trolling.
A widely circulated video also claimed that Dipke had left the protest site to stay at a luxury hotel. Dipke has denied the allegation, saying the video was recorded before the protest began and was being shared with a misleading claim.
Apart from satire and criticism, several posts have raised questions about the arrangements for food and refreshments at the protest site. Some users have tagged the National Investigation Agency and other government agencies on social media, demanding a probe into the organisation’s funding and alleging that any possible foreign funding should be examined.
The CJP protest, which began over alleged irregularities in the NEET-UG examination, has increasingly moved beyond the ground at Jantar Mantar and into a parallel digital battle. While supporters see the movement as a student-led campaign for accountability, its critics are using social media to challenge its credibility, funding and leadership.
