- Haryana lawyer seeks to register satirical ‘Cockroach Janta Party’ nationally.
- Founder declined to return to India to formalize party registration.
- New objectives submitted to ECI differ from original satirical agenda.
A lawyer from Haryana’s Panipat has filed an application with the Election Commission of India (ECI) seeking to register the online satirical collective Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) in his own name, separate from its US-based founder Abhijeet Dipke, people aware of the matter said on Tuesday.
Application Filed Under Section 29A
Sudhir Jakhar, who identifies himself as the party’s national convener, submitted the application to the ECI secretary for registration under Section 29A of the Representation of the People Act.
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The application reportedly carries the CJP’s cockroach logo along with Jakhar’s designation as a lawyer.
According to people aware of the development, a Jakhar-registered CJP could potentially claim ownership of the party’s social media handles, Hindustan Times reported.
Origin Of CJP And Viral Growth
The CJP was launched this month amid outrage over remarks made by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant regarding unemployed youth.
“There are youngsters, like cockroaches, who don’t get any employment or have any place in the profession. Some of them become media, some of them become social media, RTI activists, and other activists, and they start attacking everyone.”
Following its launch, the CJP’s X account was withheld in India five days later. The collective quickly emerged as one of the country’s fastest-growing online trends, with its Instagram account reportedly surpassing the follower count of the Bharatiya Janata Party.
Thousands of users had also signed up through online membership forms.
Dispute Over Party Control
Jakhar said the group had approached Dipke and urged him to return to India to register the party officially.
He said Dipke, who is pursuing a master’s degree at Boston University, declined to do so.
“Dipke declined to come to India and convert this movement into an actual ground-level political party. Seeing the anger among the youth and the scale of what has been built, we felt that if someone else registered the name first and misused it, the entire movement would be lost. We decided to move ahead ourselves to ensure that does not happen,” Jakhar said.
Dipke did not immediately respond to a request for comments.
Objectives Submitted To ECI
Jakhar is scheduled to appear before the Election Commission on Tuesday to submit remaining documents.
The objectives listed in the application include promotion of fundamental duties under Article 51A of the Constitution, democratic participation, social audit of governance, environmental protection, animal welfare, legal awareness, whistle-blower protection, transparency, communal harmony, and peaceful democratic reforms.
These differ from the original CJP agenda, which included demands such as no Rajya Sabha seats for retired Chief Justices, prosecution under anti-terror law for vote deletions, 50% women’s reservation in Parliament and Cabinet, cancellation of media licences of billionaire industrialists, and a 20-year ban on political defectors.
EC Powers And Political Party Status
The Election Commission of India has the authority to determine a registered party’s authorised office-bearers under the Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968. The provision has previously been used in cases such as the Shiv Sena and Nationalist Congress Party splits.
If approved, CJP could be recognised as a Registered Unrecognised Political Party.
The status is similar to what Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam held when it won 108 of 234 seats and formed the government in Tamil Nadu, and what the Aam Aadmi Party had when it came to power in Delhi in 2013.
Symbol Uncertainty
The party’s cockroach symbol is unlikely to be approved, as the Election Commission bars such symbols.
The EC’s free symbols list includes 164 items such as a noodle bowl, a pressure cooker and a baby walker, but does not include any insect symbols.
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