NEW DELHI, India – Indian security forces used tear gas and batons on Monday to disperse thousands of youth-led protesters marching toward Parliament to demand the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
The massive demonstration was organized by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), a satirical youth movement that emerged following widespread public outrage over paper leaks affecting national competitive examinations. Okay News reports that the protest coincided with the opening day of Parliament’s monsoon session, which faced repeated adjournments as opposition lawmakers disrupted proceedings to support the demonstrators’ demands.
Security personnel erected heavy steel barricades and suspended mobile internet services across central Delhi to block the march from its assembly point at Jantar Mantar. Multiple injuries were reported as police charged crowds attempting to break through security lines, while CJP representatives managed to deliver a formal list of demands to Health Minister J. P. Nadda.
The movement was founded by digital strategist Abhijeet Dipke and gained significant momentum following the hospital transfer of hunger-striking activist Sonam Wangchuk. Despite calls from government officials for calm and an end to the sit-in, thousands of protesters remained camped in central New Delhi under heavy police surveillance.
