New Delhi: In an unusual mix of politics and satire, Trinamool Congress (TMC) leaders Mahua Moitra and Kirti Azad have said they would like to join the online ‘Cockroach Janta Party’, a mock political front created after Chief Justice Surya Kant’s reported remarks on youngsters.
TMC’s Kirti Azad took to X to ask bluntly, “I would like to join the cockroach janta party. What are the qualifications required?”
The party’s social account replied in equal measure of mock along with a tinge of seriousness and nostalgia: “Winning the 1983 World Cup is a good enough qualification.”
Mahua Moitra, not one to miss the joke, also jumped into the exchange and wrote, “I too would like to join the CJP (besides being a card carrying member of the Anti National Party).”
The CJP replied with a sharp message, saying, “Those who rig elections and spread communal hatred are the real anti-nationals. You are the fighter democracy needs, @MahuaMoitra. Welcome to CJP!”
The Joke Behind CJP
Created as a cheeky response to CJI Surya Kant’s reported “youngsters like cockroaches” remark, the CJP has quickly turned into a busy social media movement calling itself “the voice of the lazy and unemployed.” The mock party has also sparked plenty of online debate and memes, as reported by Mint.
On 15 May, Live Law quoted CJI Surya Kant saying, “There are youngsters like cockroaches, who don’t get any employment and 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 CJI later pushed back against the furore, claiming a section of the media had “misquoted” his “oral observations”.
Meanwhile, the CJP’s website says its goal is to create a party for young people who are often called lazy, chronically online and, most recently, cockroaches. “That’s it. That’s the mission. The rest is satire.”
CJP Claims Rapid Growth
Despite being barely over two days old, the CJP boasts rapid growth: it claims 40,000 members, “more than 13K cockroaches on Instagram”, and “more than 10K cockroaches on Twitter” in just 24 hours.
The movement has even drafted a “five-point agenda for 2029.”
Anticipating criticism, the CJP responded in advance to its critics on social media: “With the growing support for CJP, we are fully aware that attempts will be made to dismantle us and portray us as anti-social elements. We want to make it absolutely clear that CJP firmly believes in the Constitution of India and will always work towards protecting its values.”
