NEW DELHI — A viral video from the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP) protest at Jantar Mantar on June 6 has sparked widespread outrage after a man identifying himself as a Delhi High Court advocate stated he had “no problem” if India were broken into seven pieces.
The incident occurred during the CJP’s first major offline demonstration, which drew hundreds to thousands of mostly young participants demanding the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over alleged irregularities in exams like NEET-UG. Organizers, led by founder Abhijeet Dipke, framed the event as a peaceful satire-turned-movement highlighting youth unemployment, education system failures, and calls for accountability.
In the clip, a reporter questions the man in a blue kurta about “threats to break the country.” He replies that it wouldn’t bother him, adding he would have no issue even if it were divided into more pieces. The video spread rapidly on social media platforms like Instagram and X, with users labeling the statement “anti-national” and demanding action.
As the video went viral, Abhijeet Iyer Mitra, who often appears in news channel debates as a supporter of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), said that he had sent the man — identified as Mayank — to the CJP protest to give him a ground report. Taking to social media, Mitra claimed that Mayank is a thorough nationalist and made the remarks as sarcasm.
“He said that crap to ‘fit in’ so that he could get me more info. I’d specifically tasked him to find SFI/AISA creeps. Yeah, he role-played a bit too well. But that was his brief, and that included saying crap like ‘yes I want to see India split in 7.’ If he hadn’t said that, the SFI/AISA creeps wouldn’t have shared info with him,” claimed Mitra.
Meanwhile, CJP has filed a criminal complaint with the Delhi Police Commissioner against Mitra and unidentified individuals for criminal conspiracy, acts endangering the sovereignty, unity and integrity of India, and intentional provocation to disrupt public peace during the CJP protest.
“During the course of this peaceful gathering, Mayank Bhandari, on the request of Mr. Mitra, infiltrated the protest space. This individual deliberately engaged with media personnel and the public on-camera, making highly inflammatory, anti-national, and secessionist statements, explicitly calling for the breaking up and balkanization of the Republic of India into ‘7 pieces,’” reads the complaint.
Netizens and commentators have tagged the Bar Council of India and authorities, calling for Maheshwari’s enrollment to be reviewed or cancelled under professional misconduct provisions and potential legal action. As of now, no official confirmation of disciplinary proceedings or arrests linked specifically to this incident has been widely reported.
The CJP originated as an online satirical response to remarks by the Chief Justice likening certain critics to “cockroaches.” It ballooned into a youth platform with millions of followers, using humor and protest to spotlight systemic issues in education and employment. While the June 6 event remained largely peaceful — with police permission and patriotic elements like carrying the Tiranga — fringe voices at large gatherings have once again highlighted risks of narrative hijacking in India’s polarized environment.
In a video statement released by the organization, CJP spokesperson Saurav Das said the group had anticipated attempts by “anti-social” and “anti-India” elements to infiltrate the demonstration.
“On June 6, a historic protest by young people took place at Jantar Mantar. Before this protest, however, we repeatedly warned that some anti-social elements and anti-India elements would try to infiltrate the protest and either deliver provocative speeches or make inflammatory statements to the media,” Das said.
The Hindustan Gazette provides the latest news today from India and the world. Get all exclusive Breaking News, current, Headlines, live news, latest news on business, sports, world, and entertainment with exclusive Opinions and Editorials on thehindustangazette.com
Copyright © 2023 THG MEDIA LLP
All Rights Reserved
Leave a Reply