By NE NOW NEWS
Guwahati: The Cockroach Janata Party (CJP), a political satire campaign launched only days ago, has crossed 11 million followers on Instagram, overtaking the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) official account and emerging as one of India’s fastest-growing online political trends.
As of 11 am on May 21, the BJP’s official Instagram account had approximately 8.7 million followers, while the CJP account had climbed to nearly 11.9 million followers despite having no formal political structure or on-ground organisational presence. The Congress party’s Instagram account stood at around 13.2 million followers, while the Aam Aadmi Party had approximately 1.9 million followers.
The campaign’s growth has been unusually rapid. The account crossed 3 million followers within roughly 78 hours of launch and moved beyond 9 million followers by May 20. Despite having only around 50 posts so far, the page has surpassed the BJP’s long-established Instagram presence, which has more than 18,000 posts.
The sudden rise of the campaign has triggered widespread curiosity online, with users searching for the party’s founder, website and membership process.
The Cockroach Janata Party traces its origins to controversy surrounding remarks made by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant that were widely circulated online. The remarks were interpreted by several users as comparing unemployed youth to “cockroaches” and “parasites”, triggering criticism across social media platforms.
The CJI later clarified that his comments were directed at individuals allegedly using fake degrees to enter professions such as journalism and law, and not unemployed youth in general.
Soon after the controversy gained traction online, the Cockroach Janata Party emerged as a satirical response to the backlash. The campaign presents itself as a movement representing the “lazy”, “unemployed” and “chronically online”.
The initiative is widely linked to Abhijeet Dipke, a 30-year-old digital content creator, political commentator and student at Boston University. Reports suggest he had earlier worked as a social media volunteer with the Aam Aadmi Party between 2020 and 2023.
In one of the campaign’s viral posts, Dipke appeared to take a swipe at the BJP’s online influence, writing: “It took just four days. Don’t underestimate the power of youth.” Another line in the same post referenced the ruling party’s “world’s largest party” claim.
The campaign also operates through a dedicated website carrying the slogan “Voice of the Lazy & Unemployed”. Its website outlines a five-point manifesto touching on issues such as electoral reforms, women’s reservation, media ownership and anti-defection measures.
Among its proposals are a bar on post-retirement Rajya Sabha seats for chief justices, stricter action over alleged voter list irregularities, 50% reservation for women in Parliament and Cabinet positions, scrutiny of media ownership, and long-term disqualification for legislators switching political parties.
The website also includes a satirical membership checklist listing qualifications such as “Unemployed”, “Lazy”, “Chronically online” and “Can rant professionally”.
The movement has additionally drawn engagement from political figures including Trinamool Congress MPs Kirti Azad and Mahua Moitra, both of whom interacted with the platform in a humorous manner on social media.