‘We have done it’: Joy as ‘Cockroach’ protests push India minister out

Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan resigns aft 36-day youth-led protests implicit exam leaks rattle PM Modi’s government.

New Delhi, India – It each started with a question: “What if each cockroaches came together?”

Thirty-six days aft Abhijeet Dipke’s societal media post, the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) helium created had scored a large governmental victory: Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan announced helium was stepping down successful the look of wide protests implicit an exam insubstantial leak scandal.

His resignation connected Saturday was 1 of the main demands of the youth-led demonstrations crossed India that successful caller weeks had grown into a large situation for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

“We person done it, we person done it,” Dipke screamed into the microphone, arsenic helium broke the quality to the thousands of supporters astatine the Jantar Mantar protestation tract successful the bosom of New Delhi, wherever the net had been blocked.

He went connected to work the names of students who had died by termination owed to exam insubstantial leaks and cancellations that person impacted millions crossed India – and dedicated the protesters’ triumph to them.

Supporters of the Cockroach Janta Party march towards parliament successful New Delhi demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan implicit exam insubstantial leaks, 20 July, 2026 [Adnan Abidi/Reuters]

The announcement sparked euphoric scenes of celebration.

“They called america lazy and unemployed,” said 19-year-old Lavanya Bharti, referring to comments by India’s main justness likening India’s younker to “cockroaches” and “parasites”, which sparked the instauration of the CJP, a satirical rotation connected Modi’s BJP that has been successful powerfulness since 2014.

“We [are] lazy capable to slumber connected our Parliament Street for days; we are unemployed, bro,” she said. “We person erased the fearfulness that Modi spent years building. Cockroaches are crawling each implicit you, Modi,” she shouted, earlier joining different protesters dancing.

The CJP past called connected protesters to “return location peacefully” aft the authorities “accepted” each its demands.

They included compensation for the families of students who had died by suicide, assurances that protesters would look nary punitive enactment and a nationalist apology from constabulary and paramilitary forces for attacks connected demonstrators, specified arsenic connected July 20 erstwhile much than 100 protesters were wounded during their march to Parliament.

An injured demonstrator during a march to request the resignation of India’s acquisition curate [File: Anushree Fadnavis/Reuters]

Video of the crackdown, including constabulary firing teardrop state and utilizing batons and canes against protesters, fuelled nationwide choler and prompted tens of thousands of radical to instrumentality to the streets crossed India – from Bengaluru and Jaipur to Lucknow, Mumbai and Patna.

“I volition spell backmost to my location now, happily,” said Mehdi Hasan, 25, who had been sleeping astatine the Jantar Mantar protestation tract for the past period aft travelling much than 1,120km (696 miles) from his location successful Begusarai successful Bihar.

Holding a poster calling for accountability, helium added: “We are the radical of this country, showing the authorities that its powerfulness is not absolute”.

Nearby, 18-year-old Shruti Bedi said Pradhan’s resignation was a triumph for students but warned it was not enough.

“There needs to beryllium a full reform, a full takeover of the authorities successful our hands,” she said, shaking a achromatic spray overgarment tin successful her hands. “People person this deep-rooted contempt successful their hearts,” Bedi continued, noting that the biggest accomplishment of the Gen Z protesters is “citizens uncovering their dependable back”.

This benignant of resignation is simply a archetypal for Modi, who has been successful powerfulness for 12 years, and maintained a strongman representation — that has been tarnished by the immense magnitude of Gen Z-produced societal media contented [AFP]

Critics accidental the disconnect betwixt the alleged Generation Z successful India pushed the authorities into a corner.

“How agelong until politicians’ kids are educated overseas and we are beaten up by constabulary connected the streets for demanding our rights?” asked Bedi, adjacent a radical of friends who held the fashionable Japanese manga One Piece, a awesome adopted by Gen Z protestation movements against inequality, unemployment and aged enactment worldwide.

Finally, arsenic the protestation tract was emptying, the “cockroach” movement’s authoritative grip connected X posted a reply to Dipke’s station that sparked it all

“And today, friends, we recovered retired what happens [when the cockroaches assemble].”