Highlights
- CJI declines urgent hearing on plea over police action during CJP protest.
- CJP was launched after remarks made by the CJI during a Supreme Court hearing.
- Rahul Gandhi was detained during a protest and later released.
- Protests demanding education reforms entered a third day.
CHIEF Justice of India Surya Kant on Wednesday declined an urgent request to hear a plea challenging police action during the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) protest in Delhi, telling the petitioner, "Don't waste our time."
The hearing came weeks after remarks made by the CJI during a Supreme Court hearing, after which Abhijeet Dipke launched the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), a social media movement that has since grown into nationwide protests demanding education reforms and the resignation of education minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
The protests have also seen Congress leader Rahul Gandhi detained outside prime minister Narendra Modi's residence before he was later released.
The plea before the Supreme Court related to police action during the CJP's protest march to Parliament on Monday, the opening day of the Monsoon session, when thousands of students and young protesters gathered in central Delhi to demand Pradhan's resignation over alleged examination irregularities.
The matter was mentioned before a bench comprising the CJI and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana.
"I have the videos as well regarding police brutality... If it can be listed tomorrow (Thursday)... students are there," the lawyer said.
India's 'Cockroach' movement vows to continue protests after 178 injured in Delhi clashes
He said students had allegedly been subjected to police brutality during the protest and that the petition contained three prayers.
The CJI declined the request and said the bench was not inclined to examine video footage at the mentioning stage.
"We are not interested in videos, we don't have time to watch... We don't want to watch videos," the CJI said.
When the counsel again referred to the videos and said students had been beaten up, the CJI replied, "Don't waste our time. We don't want to watch any videos."
The CJP traces its origins to remarks made by the CJI during a Supreme Court hearing on May 15. Hearing a petition seeking directions to the Delhi High Court on the designation of senior advocates, the CJI said: "There are already parasites of society who attack the system, and you want to join hands with them? There are youngsters like cockroaches, who don't get any employment, who don't have any place in the profession. Some of them become media, some of them become social media, some of them become RTI activists, some of them become other activists, and they start attacking everyone."
The following day, on May 16, Abhijeet Dipke posted a question on X: "What if all cockroaches come together?" Later the same day, inspired by responses to the post, he announced the launch of the Cockroach Janta Party as a platform for all the "cockroaches out there".
The post, presented as a political spoof, included a link to join the party and said applicants had to be unemployed, lazy, chronically online and able to rant professionally. The movement quickly gained support on social media, particularly among young people. Dipke, 30, is pursuing a master's degree in public relations at Boston University in the US.
The protests began on Monday, when thousands marched towards Parliament demanding Pradhan's resignation over alleged examination irregularities.
The march turned violent after protesters hurled stones at security personnel, who fired tear gas and charged with batons as crowds attempted to move towards Parliament. Police said 60 civilians and 118 police personnel were injured.
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi joined the protests on Tuesday and called for prime minister Narendra Modi's resignation before staging a sit-in outside the prime minister's residence.
Modi must resign "for destroying the future of India's youth", Gandhi said.
"The government doesn't want to take any accountability, nor does it want to have a debate on it in parliament," said Gandhi, the leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha.
AFP video showed Gandhi and other lawmakers being forcibly bundled into a police bus. Gandhi later shared images of the incident and said the demonstration would not stop. He was released later on Tuesday.
Modi has not directly commented on the protests.
Congress leader Sandeep Dixit told AFP, "What happened yesterday is our Constitution got trampled upon."
"After that, no self-respecting politician or citizen can stand aside," he said.
CJP founder Dipke urged protesters not to lose hope.
"They want to break our spirit," he said. "Do not let them silence you."
CJP spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka told AFP, "It's a shameful day in the history of Indian democracy that people, honest students, who had come for a genuine issue were brutally beaten by the Delhi police."
Ranka, who met senior minister JP Nadda on Monday, said the government had not responded to the movement's demands.
A 25-year-old law student, Chandra Pratap Sishwi, said, "We have become even more fearless now."
"When I saw people being beaten up by the police like that, my blood boiled," he said.
Parliament was adjourned on Tuesday after opposition members demanded a discussion on the alleged "brutality unleashed on students".
On Wednesday, hundreds of protesters remained at Delhi's Jantar Mantar protest site as the CJP said it would continue its campaign.
"Cockroaches are alive," the group said in a social media post, describing Pradhan as "incompetent".
Pradhan made his first public comments since Monday's protest late on Tuesday, saying the government remained committed to reform.
"We owe them (students) answers, reforms and accountability," he said in a social media post.
"That is exactly what our government remains committed to delivering," he said.
Parliamentary Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju defended the government's response, saying several people had been arrested after the examination paper leaks. He said Modi had called for a "foolproof system" to prevent irregularities in future during a closed-door meeting with allies.
The protests follow a series of controversies involving India's examination system. More than 2.2 million medical entrance candidates had to retake an examination after a question paper leak. Another dispute over the online marking of examinations taken by nearly two million high school students has also fuelled public anger.
(With inputs from agencies)
