CJI Surya Kant (PTI photo)
NEW DELHI: Reacting to PIL filed by a lawyer against Cockroach Janta Party, Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant on Monday said ‘don’t take it so sentimentally.’The plea filed in the Supreme Court alleged that a distorted and malicious narrative was being pushed to malign the judiciary despite the CJI’s clarification on the controversial ‘cockroach’ remark.The CJI observed that there was no grave urgency in the matter and said the apex court would examine the pleas in due course.One of the PILs sought directions restraining the use of courtroom exchanges for commercial purposes and also calls for a CBI probe into allegations concerning fake law degrees.Another PIL sought a CBI investigation into activities linked to ‘Cockroach Janta Party’ (CJP), a satirical online campaign that surfaced after the CJI’s ‘cockroach’ remark triggered widespread debate on social media.The CJI later clarified that his remarks — aimed at people allegedly entering the legal profession with “fake and bogus degrees” — had been taken out of context and misrepresented.What started as an online satire initiative has since grown into a broader expression of digital dissent and youth frustration, with the platform relying on memes and pointed political commentary to highlight concerns such as unemployment, exam paper leaks and the state of education. Meanwhile, the CJP website was taken down on Saturday, with founder Abhijeet Dipke accusing the government of displaying “dictatorial behaviour” in a post on X. He further alleged that he had received death threats following the campaign and claimed that, instead of acting against those responsible for examination irregularities, authorities were targeting the satirical movement itself.The platform has more than 22 million followers on Instagram, rapidly gaining popularity among millennials and Gen Z users. The organisation had recently launched an online campaign seeking the resignation of education minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged systemic lapses in the education sector and the NEET-UG 2026 paper leak controversy.According to posts shared through backup social media accounts, the movement said it had crossed “one million registered Cockroaches” within a week.
