THIS is with reference to the report “Viral ‘Cockroach Janta Party’ gives voice to India’s jobless youth” (May 22). Humour serves as the best form of criticism. In this digital age, the young often express their grievances through comic demonstrations on social media, including funny videos, memes and other digital content to criticise societal norms and injustices. The Cockroach Janta Party (CJP), mocking the name of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), surfaced when the Indian Chief Justice, during a court hearing, compared unemployed youth to cockroaches.

The word ‘cockroach’, coming from one of the highest office-holders of the state and directed at the youth of his own country, was quickly picked up by frustrated youngsters and social media activists, gaining widespread attention in no time. Keeping in view the current circumstances in India, where corruption, nepotism and lack of opportunities are already hampering the true potential of the younger generation, such remarks do appear deeply insensitive and unfair.

The mocking title of CJP, although humorous on the surface, symbolises a deeply rooted failure of the Indian state machinery in providing employment opportunities to a large section of the youth. Many people in India are struggling to find jobs and secure a better standard of living. They no longer feel secure in the hands of those running the system.

Consequently, many have since ‘joined’ the CJP, cracking jokes, creating funny posters, sharing memes and making related content viral to express their frustration with a system that is supposed to support them.

Moreover, in a symbolic sense, the term ‘cockroach’, embraced by the youth them-selves, reflects the enduring survival instinct of an insect that adapts to harsh conditions and survives difficult times — conveying a message that they have not given up. If the system is a gutter, cockroaches will naturally be there. This is what the CJP seems to be saying. That makes logical sense.

This spontaneously organised social media protest, along with other recent examples from neighbouring countries, demonstrates how the modern era is re-shaping the nature of protest by mobilising people from every walk of life through virtual platforms. In contemporary times, sarcasm is increasingly replacing serious and painful demonstrations.

Perhaps this is because prolonged suffering eventually becomes normalised — people continue to feel the pain, but no longer react to it in conventional ways. Although people across the world are becoming more expressive, what India is currently witnessing reflects a widening gap between the government and the masses, as influential state figures appear unable to understand the hardships faced by the youth, and instead choose to blame them.

The CJP will eventually disappear from news and social media trends, but the problems it represents will remain embedded within the system until they are seriously addressed. The real issue is not that the youth are criticising the system through humour and satire; the real issue is that they are losing hope. When people stop believing in the system, they stop trusting the rule of law — and that is when governance itself begins to collapse.

Syed Tahir Rashdi
Shahdadpur

Published in Dawn, May 31st, 2026