“Cockroach Democracy”: Arundhati Roy on India’s Youth-Led Protest Movement & Modi’s Collapsing Support

Key Points:

• Tens of thousands of young people across North India are protesting under the banner of the Cockroach Janta Party, formed in response to a chief justice's derogatory remarks comparing unemployed youth to cockroaches.
• Protesters demand the resignation of India's education minister following a national exam question leak that forced millions of students to retake exams, leading to several student suicides.
• Award-winning writer Arundhati Roy highlights the movement's youthful energy and humor, noting it marks a rare and direct challenge to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government, which has responded with police violence.
• Roy criticizes the BJP's control over the electoral system and mainstream media, contrasting it with the brave use of social media platforms by protesters to reshape the narrative both nationally and globally.
• The protests reflect deep frustrations with youth unemployment and a broader political crisis in India, with the movement including diverse religious groups but primarily consisting of Modi's traditional Hindu right-wing constituency.