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Representatives of the Cockroach Janta Party will sit down with government officials on Friday even as thousands of young demonstrators maintained their round-the-clock vigil at Jantar Mantar in Delhi calling for the education minister to step down. The planned discussions come days after activist Sonam Wangchuk ended a 26-day hunger strike that had drawn additional attention to the cause and after Prime Minister Narendra Modi released a video message outlining plans for stricter legislation on exam leaks. A Reuters dispatch from earlier this week described the protests as the largest public challenge to Modi in his third term with the youth-led movement refusing to disperse until its core demand is met. According to multiple accounts the stalemate has persisted despite concessions offered on legal protections for participants and commitments to debate systemic reforms in parliament.
The controversy erupted after the National Eligibility cum Entrance Test for undergraduate medicine was held on May 3 with nearly 2.28 million candidates participating only for authorities to cancel the exam days later following widespread reports of a leaked question paper. An analysis compiled by Careers360 identified this as at least the fifth major NEET leak since 2015 with previous incidents in 2015 2016 2021 and 2024 also prompting cancellations retests and investigations. More than 20 students have died by suicide since the cancellation according to reports that have tracked family members joining the demonstrations. Reuters noted that the scale of the 2026 breach which reportedly involved digital guess papers circulating through coaching networks distinguished it from earlier cases and helped transform online frustration into sustained street action.
Sonam Wangchuk a prominent Ladakh-based climate and education activist concluded his fast after receiving government assurances that no legal action would be taken against those who demonstrated at Jantar Mantar or joined the attempted march to parliament. Wangchuk stated that he had also been promised parliamentary discussions on the alleged NEET leak accountability measures and broader examination reforms though no commitment was made on Pradhan’s removal. Abhijeet Dipke the founder of the Cockroach Janta Party posted a message of relief praising Wangchuk’s sacrifice for awakening national conscience after the activist’s hospitalisation last Saturday following forcible removal from the site. A subsequent police crackdown on protesters two days later left scores injured and intensified public outrage according to coverage from several outlets.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi posted a vertically shot video message late on Wednesday that many interpreted as an effort to connect directly with Instagram-active youth promising a tough new law to deter examination paper leaks. Modi said he had reviewed a draft of the proposed legislation which the cabinet is expected to consider on Friday before its introduction in parliament. The prime minister acknowledged that the issue causes immense distress to hundreds of thousands of students and their parents while reiterating earlier pledges to strengthen legal penalties for those responsible. CJP spokesperson Ashutosh Ranka told reporters at the protest site that the midnight video underscored the pressure on the government and that sacking the education minister remained the clearest signal of accountability.
The Cockroach Janta Party originated in May as a satirical online campaign that adopted the insect label after a senior judge referred to unemployed young people using the term. The movement quickly pivoted to focus on repeated irregularities in India’s competitive examinations gaining a large social media following that translated into physical gatherings across multiple cities including Pune Lucknow and Bengaluru. India Today reported that Abhijeet Dipke returned from abroad in early June to lead the Jantar Mantar sit-in which has now continued for more than a month with participants sleeping on pavements and chanting for Pradhan’s ouster. Economic Times coverage from mid-June detailed how the group expanded its nationwide protests after an initial Delhi rally pressing the same resignation demand.
Security measures around Jantar Mantar have intensified with heavy police deployments mobile internet suspensions in nearby areas and the closure of 17 metro stations as authorities seek to manage the crowds. A 23-year-old corporate worker named Fabiha Sayyed who has been at the site expressed relief that Wangchuk had ended his fast saying he had done a lot for the youth and that protesters did not want to see him lose his life. Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has so far declined to address the resignation calls directly but previously accused the opposition Congress party of exploiting students for political disruption. The protests have highlighted deeper frustrations with India’s examination system where reports have tallied dozens of major paper leaks across central and state tests over the past decade.
