The arrogance of the apex court found eloquent expression when the Chief Justice of India Surya Kant made a provocative statement trashing social activists as ‘cockroaches’ and brought down the dignity of what was a hallowed hall of justice. A young techie from Maharashtra based in Boston, US, unleashed an instant storm on the internet – the reigning platform for people’s voice – by challenging the establishment and announcing the formation of the Cockroach Janata Party, which had shades of both Jaiprakash Narayan’s Total Revolution movement and Arvind Kejriwal’s Aam Aadmi Party in its nomenclature. It proved to be a huge hit with millions of young Indians virtually jumping onto its bandwagon, drawing significantly more members than the ruling BJP. Yet, on the ground, in a telling commentary on the changing mores, nothing much has happened after the new party’s founder Abhijeet Dipke flew down to the national capital and went into action mode. Admittedly, this was not a movement of the hoi polloi. This was conceived as an offensive by the intelligent, educated, socially conscious young generation with an anti-establishment mindset. Their social frenzy, however, is limited to social media.
Political establishments, many drunk with power and others lacking the nerve to take on the establishment, watched from a distance to see how the Cockroaches would proceed. Situations conspired to undercut the storm that Dipke and his swarm of ‘followers’ sought to unleash. In this state of disappointment, Sonam Wangchuk emerged. The prominent climate activist based out of Ladakh, is now the central focus of the CJP and the dharna it holds at Jantar Mantar. With a defiant Modi dispensation refusing to accept the demand for the resignation of Education Minister, Dharmendra Pradhan– a shameless symbol of India’s huge system failures—activist Wangchuk’s life is in danger. The movement itself faces odds. With no organisational heft, and politicians as a class standing united against any change in the corrupt systems, the way forward for this movement is worth watching.
Wangchuk and Dipke represent the collective conscience of a generation uncomfortable with the establishment’s drift from its avowed goals. When millions raised a storm on the Internet, it reflected the unpopularity of the Modi government, which is failing on multiple fronts. Joblessness among the educated segments of society is a serious issue defying solutions. Social progress is limited to a small section of the 1.4 billion people. The manufacturing sector is failing to regain steam, partly due to the corrupt systems, and a parliamentary panel is expressing serious concern over slow private investment and FDI outflow. These situations are compounded by a failure of the Monsoon, which would imperil food production. The establishment continues its ambivalent attitude, having poured cold water on the hopes of millions of young minds who painstakingly prepared for the NEET exam. Established political parties have lost their nerve to take on the government. It is in this grim scenario that Dipke and Wangchuk emerged from nowhere and sought to build mass support. They deserve a standing ovation but above all the support of all right-thinking Indians who still believe in the power of democracy and the culture of protest.
