CJP protests in India: why Gen Z’s political fury spills over into Delhi

New Delhi —

For days, the streets and parks of central India the capital is boiling with the biggest protests it has seen in years demand a change to a national examination system they say they are cheating millions by depriving them of a fair chance.

Earlier this week, as protesters, mostly from Generation Z, tried to press their demands in front of Parliament, in the heart of the world’s largest democracy, they were met with tear gas and police brutality, beaten with sticks and batons.

The protesters refuse to back down, sparking a continuing confrontation with the Hindu nationalist government of Narendra Modi, a government that critics say has overseen the crushing of dissent during its more than decade-long tenure.

About 150 protesters were taken to hospital following Monday’s violence, according to leaders of the party behind the demonstrations. Videos showing the police crackdown – widely shared within hours of the event thanks to the government-ordered internet shutdown – sparked outrage. Delhi Police said 118 of its officers were injured during the “violent protests”.

The Delhi Police had imposed prohibitory orders before the march and declared it illegal.

And on Tuesday, protesters — many showing injuries sustained by police — returned to Jantar Mantar, a 300-year-old observatory surrounded by a large open park, and rebuilt the makeshift camp that served as their headquarters. The police had demolished it the day before.

In the camp, mistrust was boiling.

“We will be here with pride,” said Sudhir Kumar, who attended Monday’s rally and said he saw protesters beaten by police.

“The main subject here is education,” said Kumar, who said he spent a year preparing for an entrance exam at a prestigious medical school, only to later learn that the documents had been leaked.

“What we face is when you prepare for the whole year and then on the big day you hear it’s rigged,” he told CNN.

Mohammad Taj, who traveled to Delhi from neighboring Haryana state and whose face was badly bruised in Monday’s crackdown, said the march to Parliament was peaceful.

“But in a flash, I don’t know what happened, the police started hitting us with batons. Children, women, old men, they hit everyone.”

In the evening, the crowd overflowed outside the site and spilled into the streets and alleys.

“Every time Modi is afraid, he calls in the police,” they chanted in unison, calling for “freedom.”

Monday’s march to Parliament was one of the largest protests against the Modi government in years.

It was organized by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), a youth-led movement that started as a joke but has since become a political force expressing the frustrations of millions of young Indians.

Founded by Boston University graduate Abhijeet Dipke, the CJP emerged in May when India’s chief justice made comments that many interpreted as referring to the country’s unemployed youth as “cockroaches.” The remarks were seen by many as insensitive, particularly in a country where youth unemployment remains stubbornly high.

The CJP spearheaded recent protests over allegations that entrance exam papers for prestigious and highly competitive medical schools had been leaked and sold. Millions of people had to retake the exam.

India’s education system has long been mired in controversies, including leaked exam papers and technical failures, placing a crushing burden on students and financial pressure on families who invest everything in their children.

Anger grew over the weekend after a prominent Indian activist, Sonam Wangchuk, who was going on a hunger strike in support of the movement, was removed from the protest site and taken to hospital. Protesters attempted to intervene and police could be seen holding sheets to block the view as they lifted Wangchuk.

Modi, who rarely responds to criticism, did not respond publicly to the protesters’ demands. On Tuesday, he sent a message via the Parliamentary Affairs Minister, who told reporters that the Indian leader was committed to ensuring that there were no more paper leaks.

Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has yet to publicly comment on Monday’s protests. Speaking to Indian news channel NDTV last month, he called the CJP the “B team of terrorist groups.”

Rahul Gandhi, the leader of India’s main opposition, was briefly arrested on Tuesday after staging a sit-in outside Modi’s residence, calling for his resignation.

There appears to be a growing determination among protesters, who say they will continue to sit until their demands are met.

For some, a change of Minister of Education and an overhaul of the exam system are no longer enough. They are demanding that Modi – who oversaw more than a decade of BJP domination of Indian politics – also leave.

“Policemen in plain clothes hit me with batons… while I was standing,” said Talwar, a protester. “This country will not change until Modi leaves.”

Correction:
This article has been updated to make clear that rally participant Sudhir Kumar saw protesters being beaten by police, but was not himself beaten.