Cockroach Janata Party's X account withheld in India; founder launches new handle hours later

Social media has been flooded with posts about the satirical "Cockroach Janta Party" (CJP), a parody political platform launched days after Chief Justice of India Surya Kant allegedly compared some unemployed youth to "cockroaches" during court proceedings. The Chief Justice later clarified that he had been misquoted and that his remarks were aimed specifically at people using fake degrees to enter professions.

The controversy gained further traction after CJP's X account, which had crossed 200,000 followers, was withheld in India following a legal demand. Soon after, the group created a new handle, @Cockroachisback, which gained nearly 24,000 followers within 90 minutes. The account posted, "You thought you can get rid of us? Lol."

While the party's X presence faced restrictions, its Instagram account remained active and reportedly crossed 12.7 million followers, reflecting the rapid online popularity of the satire movement.

Within an hour, Dipke announced that they have created a new account of the Cockroach Janta Party on the social media platform X.

Attention has also turned towards CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke, after claims surfaced regarding his past links with the Aam Aadmi Party. Dipke, a political communication strategist, previously worked with AAP's social media and election campaign teams between 2020 and 2023, contributing to meme-based digital outreach and youth-focused political messaging.

Several social media users have since questioned CJP's neutrality, accusing it of pushing political propaganda against the government. Responding to criticism, Dipke said he had earlier been inspired by AAP's education and healthcare model and wanted to contribute to its communication efforts.

The platform that started as a joke after Chief Justice of India Surya Kant described young, unemployed Indians as 'like cockroaches' has more followers on Instagram than the Bharatiya Janata Party(BJP), the world's biggest political party in terms of physical membership.

The online campaign was started by Abhijeet Dipke on 16 May. Dipke has just completed his masters in Public Relations from Boston University in USA.

The CJP manifesto demands include demands such as a ban on post-retirement Rajya Sabha seats for chief justices, 50 per cent reservation for women in Parliament without increasing the strength of the house, and a 20-year ban on turncoats.