The sudden rise of the Cockroach Janta Party has led many to question whether it is Aam Aadmi Party 2.0. But there are issues that matter to the younger generation—the Gen Z—such as the recent NEET paper leak and the CBSE online marking mess. Many NEET aspirants died by suicide after the leak, and the concerned minister, Union education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, has not resigned.Author and political commentator Anand Ranganathan says there are three aspects of the Cockroach Janta Party that people are not looking at fully, with most discussions focusing on only one or two of them. He calls the Cockroach Janta Party “Aam Aadmi Party 2.0” and points to founder Abhijeet Dipke’s past association with Aam Aadmi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal. Ranganathan says the movement is similar to the early days of the AAP. He is also critical of the Cockroach party’s leadership, describing its core members as anarchists and claiming that they are trying to create disruption and unrest.Here’s a breakdown by Anand RanganathanTwenty-two million followers, a movement born out of exam leaks, unemployment anger, and of course, a controversial cockroach remark. Supporters say this is India’s Gen Z political awakening. Critics say it’s nothing more than AAP 2.0 wrapped in a social media campaign.Joining us is author and political commentator Anand Ranganathan. Thank you. Anand, welcome to our show.Thank you.We’ve seen many online movements. Sorry, cockroach. It was a cockroach. I get the drift, but what is the larger picture that you see? Do you see this as a joke that went viral or a serious political phenomenon, the Cockroach Janata Party?First of all, thank you so much, Aditi. It’s always such a pleasure being here. I think there are three points that people haven’t looked at in their entirety. People are talking about either one of those points, or the second one, or two of those. So let’s break it down into what I believe is happening right now.Number one. Let’s be very honest. If Kejriwal had Anna Hazare, these guys have Kejriwal. It is Aam Aadmi Party 2.0. As the very famous first sentence of Metamorphosis by Kafka goes—“One morning…” Let me paraphrase it. One morning, Gregor Kejriwal woke up after an unsettled dream and found himself transformed into a giant cockroach.But don’t you think you’re being a little unfair? He’s worked with Kejriwal before, then he went abroad. From what I’ve heard him say, he obviously put this out as a joke or a sarcastic comment on what a judge said.Yes.And it acquired a life of its own.Right.He could not have predicted—and I’m talking about Abhijeet here—that this would become what it has become. So I’m talking of the expansion of the Cockroach Janata Party that has happened with the three spokespersons and others.They are a bunch of anarchists. I don’t want to use stronger words than that, but good luck to them, whatever they plan to do in life. But right now they’re just out there to create havoc and trouble, which is what anarchists do. Leftists, they’ve got all their views confused. There is a lot of Hindu phobia in there. There’s a lot of taking pride in doing things illegally.If you were to ask them, was Shaheen Bagh illegal, where they blocked a road for six months, none of them would say it was illegal. Were the farm protests illegal when they blocked the highways? No.So fundamentally, they are from the same fold as the Aam Aadmi Party—anarchists, leftists, rejects of society, dregs.But here is the thing. The first point is, it’s very clear who they are. The second point is, do they have a right to do what they’re doing?And the answer—not just because I’m a free speech absolutist, but even otherwise—is absolutely and emphatically yes. Of course, according to me, they have a right to say or do whatever they want, form a party, have a press conference, allege whatever they want.And this is where the government has got it wrong when they’re saying, “We’re blocking this for national security issues, sovereignty issues.” I mean, come on.Let’s remember what was happening during the UPA time. I think there was a cartoonist who basically changed the symbol of the Sarnath lions—Yeah, with wolves.And the UPA came down heavily on him. I forget his name. Aseem, I think his name was.Aseem.Some UAPA-type provisions were added on him. He was arrested. He was jailed. BJP was supporting that person.So when you’re in power, you suddenly feel that the nation is at threat. No. The nation is not at threat from whatever these bunch of no-hopers are doing. So I support them completely.Now I come to the final point, which is very important and which people are missing. This is why I feel the BJP has not just lost the plot but missed the bus, because each and every one of these issues are genuine issues.Please remember how Arvind Kejriwal gained popularity. He piggybacked on genuine grouses and genuine issues, which was corruption at that point in time, 15 years ago. It was only later, when people understood what he wanted to do and how things turned out, that people realized his real intentions.In this case, there is a big difference. They are piggybacking on genuine grouses. I’ll come to that in a minute. But here, people know who these guys are. We had no idea who Kejriwal was. We thought he was an honest guy, he was going to change society, and he was one of us.It’s only five or six years down the line that people got to know the real Kejriwal, and now we know he’s as despotic as any other politician, which is fine by me. Like Lalu, like Kejriwal, like anybody else.These guys, we know who they are. But this is how they start a movement. They piggyback on genuine grouses.And this is the third point very quickly, Aditi. Years before what CJP is doing, right-wing, meritorious Modi supporters have brought up exactly these issues. Exactly these issues.Corruption—I can name them. Anuradha Tiwari is one, Ajit Bharti is another. UGC issues, potholes on the road, the QR code thing, corruption, injustice, government malaise, examination leaks. More issues than what the CJP has brought in, the right-wingers have brought up.And what happened to them?The BJP went after them. BJP supporters called them all sorts of things. They were even equated with jihadis.So the chicken has come home to roost because the same people whose genuine grouses you ignored, and whom you should have supported, were pushed aside. Now somebody else has taken that mantle. And perhaps they are among those 22 million followers that the Cockroach Janata Party has.But I’m going to come down to each of these three issues one by one.Sure. And first, let me start with when you say they are the dregs and they are the anarchists. Who are you referring to? Because there are 22 million kids out there, youngsters out there. Not all of them can be anarchists. Many of them would be people who are actually hurt by what has happened in India, by mental health issues. There are people who committed suicide. Those are not issues that we can trifle with, and you’re right there. But when you’re saying dregs, who are you referring to?Everyone, each one of them can’t be dregs.Thank you for saying that. Of course, I don’t know who those 22 million people are. Followers are possibly not supporters. Whatever the case may be, my categorization is of the spokespersons and the people surrounding those spokespersons. They are the ones who are leftist anarchists.Okay.Not the followers. Thanks for the clarification.Of course.So now this has largely been an online movement.Just to clarify, Kejriwal was a dyed-in-the-wool leftist, right? But a lot of supporters of the Aam Aadmi Party at that point of time—That’s exactly what I mean. You piggyback on a genuine grouse, which is pan-India, ideology-agnostic, party-agnostic. That is how you build a movement, and then slowly the cover falls off.Even if several thousand of these online activists turn up at Jantar Mantar, do you believe that—It will be difficult to make the cockroaches back off. What they have done to begin with is antagonize the entire legal procedure. They haven’t got permission to be at Jantar Mantar.And this is what I mean. Anarchists and leftists—this is exactly what they do.But I think he clarified that he’s going to ask for permission after landing.So the guy lands just a few hours before the protest is supposed to happen. Tens of thousands are supposed to gather, and he goes and asks for permission.Now you know what happens. When you ask for permission, it is not granted immediately. The police have to do reconnaissance. They have to visit the place. They have to find out where the exits and entrances are. What if 10,000 people suddenly arrive?There is a procedure, and it takes days. After that, you are given clearance not just by the police but by the fire department and others. It’s a whole process.What are they expecting? You go to the police station, your protest is a few hours away, and you get permission instantly?Obviously, they planned this. Then they would hype it up by saying, “Look, this is an anti-democratic state. It didn’t give us permission to protest.”And not just that. Even if you say they cleverly planned it, look at what the spokesperson said. He said, “Why should we need permission?”So let me say this. This is classic The Man Who Was Thursday. This is classic anarchy. This is what they do. They have displayed their cards.So you’re saying that it’s headed toward a firestorm, a melee, when the ground event actually happens.Yes.But what options does the government have? Because it has to do something. If it refuses permission now, the perception and the narrative become, “The government is suppressing protest.”Which is exactly what they want.But if that happens, what are the options before the government, the police, or whoever the authorities are? Can they make this happen in some other way?So this is the nub of the issue, and this is where I believe the BJP, Modi, and everyone down the line have got it completely wrong.The government should have appropriated this movement because the fact remains, as Anuradha is saying, as Ajit is saying, and as many others are saying—we are cockroaches, yaar.Everything is hunky-dory in this country. Yes, there is no alternative to Modi. Modi is doing well. The country is doing well.But these are also issues that matter.Of course. And it affects Gen Z. It affects the generation. That’s it.Look at the 10 people who committed suicide. The minister is still there. CBSE came after that, UGC before that.The point is, the grouse is as serious as the anti-corruption grouse was serious.The BJP should have appropriated it. Maybe senior leaders might have, but younger BJP leaders should have come out and said, “We stand with this.”And if Modi tweeted, “I hear you,” Gen Z would feel heard. Right now, Gen Z feels nobody hears us.So let us follow CJP.That’s what they’re feeling.Anuradha has used the word “cockroaches” much before these people did. What does cockroach mean, and why are critics of the CJP using the word derogatorily?We are cockroaches. Cockroaches are meant to survive even a nuclear holocaust.The way Indians are surviving—contamination in water, contamination everywhere, injustice everywhere, corruption everywhere, government apathy.Two days ago, 20 people died. Someone had a permit for six hotel rooms and was operating with 25. Then he says, “I don’t know.”Today the headline says, “In Delhi, everything is fine.”This is the attitude.Obviously, there is corruption. Who allowed all of that?So we are surviving this holocaust of corruption, apathy, injustice, and indifference. We are cockroaches.The more you deny it, the more genuine people will come to this movement.And let me tell you, when the Aam Aadmi Party was against the UPA, BJP was also supporting it.Exactly.Why was it supporting it?Because it felt it was a genuine grouse.Do you feel that this time the opposition will take a note from that BJP playbook and support these kids?So I’ll tell you what has happened. Because, as you said, the issues are very, very relevant.And this is the problem these guys have created for themselves. They have chosen people with clear political backing or affiliations. Had they remained like Kejriwal did for one year, without any political support, then a lot of political parties would have joined them.Congress has already come out and said that this is AAP. If we follow them, we will lose ourselves. We will protest separately.They are protesting against and demanding exactly the same things that the Cockroach Janata Party is demanding. They are getting hit by water cannons and all that, but separately.I mean, we can say they are AAP, we can say they are anarchists, but their issues are relevant.There are 22 million youth in India who have at least online joined that party and said, “We’re with you.”That means there is a genuine grouse, which you admit, right?What is the lesson—or rather, what is the solution?Because those solutions are just the resignation of the education minister, which the CJP is demanding. That is not really going to solve the issue. Today they also demanded the resignation of the finance minister. It is the classic line they have taken.Absolutely okay. You have to ask for something.So you are asking for resignation.Yes. Because that is normally what we have seen in this country. If something happens, you ask for the highest heads to roll if no heads are rolling in between.Let me answer this.I am disappointed that there are only officially 22 million cockroaches. I want 100 million cockroaches. I want a billion cockroaches because that’s what we are.Unless we identify who we are, we are never going to solve it.And that is why I’m saying the BJP got it wrong.People from the BJP, people who are right-wingers, who were raising these issues and demanding accountability from the government, were shunned, abused, and ridiculed.Those are the people the BJP could have listened to and said, “Yes, we hear you. We are taking corrective steps.”Which corrective steps is the government taking now?A minor CBSE official was moved somewhere else. He wasn’t really punished. He may well be celebrating now.So the point is, this is not just an issue. It is a genuine issue, and all of us are cockroaches.I challenge anybody to say otherwise. Make Modi wait for half an hour and I’ll prove that he is also a cockroach.All of us are.Anybody surviving in today’s India—we may be better off than we were before, that’s fine. But compare us to any developed country.Should I tell you the statistics?Thirty-four percent of all infants under five are chronically malnourished and stunted. Twenty percent of Indian children have never been vaccinated.Look at health indices, water quality, take anything.We are survivors.We are cockroaches. Identify it. Solve the problem.So there you’re saying it yourself—that you are also a cockroach.One hundred percent.You are also subscribing to what CJP is talking about.Yes.But my problem is that CJP is raising this now. All these issues were raised before, but the BJP made a mistake by abusing those who raised them.Now what has it become?So if CJP keeps growing, who should be most worried?The cockroaches should be most worried.AAP grew, right? Who do you think was most worried?A simple question. Were politicians more worried by AAP or were common people?The common people were more worried. I was genuinely disappointed.Why would Modi be disappointed with Kejriwal? Kejriwal is just another politician. Lalu, Kejriwal, Mamata, Modi—what difference does it make to them? The more, the merrier among that group.We were the ones who felt betrayed.So tomorrow, if CJP grows on the back of genuine issues, good luck to them. But if later they show their true colours, we will be the ones who suffer, Aditi.Do you think they can spring a surprise and that their true colours might actually be the colours people want to see?Because, as you said, the issues they are raising are real. Their manner of speaking and the way they have gathered youth support could be an awakening for Gen Z.We always say Gen Z is absorbed in its own world—cell phones, laptops, social media.Do you think this could be a political awakening for Gen Z?It should be.I just hope Gen Z realizes who is at the vanguard.I don’t like the people at the vanguard, the top four or five people, because we know who they are.That I agree with you on.We know who they are. That is their problem. They displayed their cards too early.If they had done what Kejriwal did in the first year of the Aam Aadmi Party, many of us would have supported them.Why did we support Kejriwal?Because we didn’t know the real Kejriwal. We thought he was one of us. We thought he was standing up for us.Then we saw what happened.I just don’t want Gen Z to be disappointed.At the same time, I want the people at the vanguard to realize that one good thing about youth is that young people are more willing to admit when they are wrong.I hope so.Even people at the vanguard can say, “We were wrong.”But I doubt it. A leftist will never really admit being wrong.But clearly, whether it is CJP or not, what they have proven is that there is a space for this.Yes.And that the youth is disappointed by our politicians.Yes.And that disappointment is really sad in this day and age.We have seen such youth movements in neighbouring countries.It’s scary.In India, the situation will not come down to what has happened in Nepal and elsewhere.But here is the thing: when we say this is only about Gen Z, I take you back to what doctors are doing in emergency wards—working 36 hours without sleep, Aditi.During COVID, the health minister did not even know how many doctors had died. Seven hundred doctors died saving millions of people.And who respects them?Seventy percent of them get assaulted.So when you look at the data, everyone is a cockroach. Some just continue to work, survive, and serve the country despite everything.That is what worries me.So there is a huge lesson to be learned from the rise of the youth.Yes.And from what the Cockroach Janata Party represents.Yes.The name sounds funny, but it is really a serious matter.Yes.It is something we need to think about, and something policymakers need to think about as well.Need to.And with that, viewers, we will let Anand go. Thank you. He has another appointment.