High Court declines urgent hearing to block ‘Cockroach Janta Party’ protest tomorrow

The Delhi High Court on Friday declined an urgent hearing on a petition raising law and order concerns over the “Cockroach Janta Party” (CJP) protest scheduled for June 6 at Jantar Mantar. A vacation bench of Justices Saurabh Banerjee and Amit Sharma refused to hear the plea today, stating that the Delhi Police would manage the situation. The petition, filed by the Save India Foundation, sought enforcement of Supreme Court guidelines governing public demonstrations. Advocate Umesh Chandra Sharma noted that a detailed representation will now be submitted to the police, with the case to be listed in due course.

The satirical movement emerged after remarks attributed to Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, who compared certain unemployed youth and social media activists to “cockroaches” and “parasites.” Despite a subsequent clarification from the CJI that his comments targeted fake-degree holders and were misquoted, the phrase went viral. Founded by Boston University graduate Abhijeet Dipke on May 16, the CJP’s Instagram page rapidly amassed millions of followers, outpacing the official handle of the governing Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The outfit’s growing support base includes climate activist Sonam Wangchuk—who is expected to attend the Saturday demonstration—and actor Prakash Raj. Moving beyond online satire, the CJP held its first official press conference in Delhi on Wednesday after appointing investigative journalist Saurav Das, filmmaker Vijeta Dahiya, and former consultant Ashutosh Ranka as official spokespersons. “Our main demand is that there should be some accountability in the system.

A total of 8 lakh people have signed a petition asking for Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan’s resignation. There is not a single answer from their side. Two officers have been transferred; this is not a punishment, as they weren’t even suspended. We are seeking accountability from the system.

You have seen the support we are getting all over the country,” said Sourav Das, a CJP member and journalist, at the press conference.