It started as a satirical page named after an insect. A week later, police are guarding its founder’s home, Union ministers and senior leaders are making cross-border allegations, and cybercriminals are running scams in its name.
The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), an unregistered online group founded by Boston University student Abhijit Debke, continues to creep its way up the public imagination and the eyes of the government.
Her latest post on Instagram showed some young men and women dressed as “cockroaches” in Jaipur, Rajasthan, protesting against corruption. “Cockroaches are making their voices heard, just the way we want them to, peacefully and democratically,” the caption read.
In Bhubaneshwar, Odisha, some youth had earlier used this slogan to protest against delays in employment.
It is now widely known that the CJP has more than 20 million followers on Instagram through memes and political commentary – overtaking the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party and the main opposition Congress – but now the matter may reach the Supreme Court A petition was filed against the group’s “commercial” interests.
The Supreme Court happens to be the place where I got my inspiration in the first place – This is mainly due to its name – after the Chief Justice of India, Surya Kant, used the words “cockroaches” and “parasites” to refer to unemployed youth. The CJI later clarified that he was only talking about fake degree holders.
Police at the Debkey family home
Farther away in Maharashtra, police were deployed around the clock outside the residence of Debki’s parents in Chhatrapati Sambaginagar. Deputy Commissioner of Police Pankaj Atulkar told news agency PTI that the deployment had been made Precautionary.
“This is to ensure that there is no crowding at his place as the CJP issue is trending on social media at the moment,” he said, denying receiving any formal complaint about the threat.
Debke, speaking from the United States, painted a more serious picture. He said in multiple statements: “I have been receiving constant threats to myself and my family who are in India. I received a video clip in which a man said they arrived outside my house.”. His father Bhagwan told a Marathi news channel that he had not slept for two nights. “I am worried because Abhijeet has become famous now. Such individuals are being arrested,” he said. Mother Anita added: “We just want him to come home safe. I will not support him in this matter.”
Dipke said his Instagram account was hacked, X’s account was blocked in India, and CJP’s website was deleted or restricted. The social media company said in its note that the X handle was blocked “in response to a legal request.” And now the “party” also has a backup account on Instagram.
While the party faces government banning orders, a key ally of the BJP-led NDA regime said the party is “driven by unemployment”. The movements thus spread to Vijayawada, where the head of the state unit of the ruling party in Andhra Pradesh called for “the need to take concerns into account,” in a clear departure from the more aggressive path taken by the Bharatiya Janata Party, the main component of the NDA.
This “Pakistani” claim was refuted
By dispensing the ruling, familiar allegations emerged when senior BJP leaders sought to portray the BJP’s followers as a “foreign operation”.
Union Minister Sukanta Majumdar claimed on Saturday that 49% of the party’s social media followers were from Pakistan, while only 9% were from India – without providing evidence. Majumdar happens to be the Minister of State for Education, under his direct supervision Dharmendra Pradhan, the education minister in the cabinet whose resignation was demanded by the CJP over the leak of NEET-UG 2026 papers.
Kerala BJP president Rajeev Chandrasekhar described the CJP as a “classic cross-border influence operation”. Delhi BJP leader Tajinder Bagga, known for his social media presence, called him the ‘Janta Party of Pakistan’ on Channel X.
Union Minister Kiren Rijiju conducted an indirect research, saying that the number of youth in India is large enough to have a real following and there was ““There is no need to seek validation from the anti-India cabal.”
Debaki, Who in the past had worked for the AAP and which also arose out of public anger against the then Congress-led UPA regime, responded with a video to
TDP’s cautious approach
Not all allies within the NDA were combative, and at least one of them sought to learn a lesson from the CJP’s rise. President of Andhra Pradesh unit of TDP Bala Srinivasa Rao, whose party’s 16 Lok Sabha seats are crucial for the NDA’s majority at the Centre, said on Sunday. “I have seen and heard about the Janata Cockroach Party, which has created a huge buzz on social media. They are living up to the aspirations of the youth.”
He added that some of the concerns raised by the CJP “should be taken into account” and added: “After seeing this movement, it seems that we need to reset our policies.” But he warned young people about the “influence of external forces” on social media.
Congress MP Shashi Tharoor and party general secretary KC Venugopal criticized the blocking of RJD handles, arguing that its presence only reflects the public mood.
But a man was identified as Raja Chaudhry is not pleased.
SC petition filed, fraud feared
On Sunday, he filed a petition in the Supreme Court seeking a CBI probe into the CJP. His argument is that the oral remarks made by CJI Surya Kant in the courtroom are being used for commercial purposes.
Chaudhry, whose details were not immediately known, has been tagged Trademark applications filed for the expression “Cockroach Janta Party”, it said, amounted to the judges’ observations being “appropriated for commercial exploitation, political branding, promotion of memes, brand benefits, or monetised digital circulation”.
Beyond its own experiences and problems, the CJP “movement” has now spawned a secondary scam ecosystem – arguably a sign of true viral mass reach.
Punjab Police issued a warning after phishing links posing as invitations to CJP party membership began circulating on WhatsApp.
In a video on X, a Ludhiana police officer warned against this “No joke.”
“Once you click on this link, your phone will be hacked immediately, and all your banking details will be transferred to the scammers,” he said in the official video. He added that the scam messages use appeals targeting young people, such as, “The country demands regime change. It’s time.” Police in the AAP-ruled state have warned that the link to it may not be real.
