India student protests keep up pressure on Modi government

Crowds of supporters of India's online "cockroach" movement grew on Wednesday at a New Delhi protest site. Their campaign for accountability following examination scandals got a boost inside parliament from opposition lawmakers.

The protests have emerged as one of the biggest challenges to Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government since his re-election in 2024.

Why are students protesting in India?

Students are protesting over several exam irregularities, including a leaked medical entrance exam paper that forced more than two million candidates to retake the test. A separate dispute over the online marking of exams taken by nearly two million high school students has also fuelled public anger.

The protests, led by the social media-driven Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) movement, are demanding the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.

What is happening at the Jantar Mantar protest site?

Protesters have refused to leave the Jantar Mantar site in the heart of the Indian capital, with crowds swelling to several thousand people on Wednesday, according to AFP correspondents.

CJP spokesman Ashutosh Ranka told cheering supporters they would not leave until Pradhan resigns. He said the movement had awakened a country where criticising the government was once considered treason.

How has the opposition responded to the protests?

The protesters, most of them young students, got a major boost on Tuesday after opposition parties threw their weight behind the movement, staging a sit-in outside the prime minister's residence. Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is asking the government to apologize for the police crackdown on tens of thousands of protesters on Monday.

Gandhi, who was briefly detained on Tuesday, appeared in parliament on Wednesday dressed in black, demanding accountability from the government. The opposition Samajwadi Party also staged a protest in the parliament premises, with leader Akhilesh Yadav saying Modi has remained silent on an issue affecting every young Indian.

Why is the movement called the Cockroach Janta Party?

The CJP movement, which has millions of followers on social media, emerged in May as a satirical response to Chief Justice Surya Kant reportedly likening young people to "cockroaches" and "parasites" during a court hearing. The comparison sparked outrage among young Indians.

The movement has since broadened its agenda to include concerns over unemployment, opportunities for young people, and what it describes as Modi's increasingly authoritarian style of governance.

What happened during Monday's police crackdown?

Police fired tear gas and baton-charged demonstrators as they tried to march to parliament on the opening day of the monsoon session. As tensions escalated, protesters responded by hurling stones, in what marked the capital's largest street rally in five years. Rights groups have accused police of using excessive force, and Amnesty International said the Delhi Police's actions raise serious questions over whether their response met the standards of legality, necessity and proportionality under international human rights law. India's Supreme Court on Wednesday refused to hear a petition alleging police brutality against the protesters.

Are the protests spreading beyond Delhi?

At the Jantar Mantar site, where a group of activists has been camping for nearly a month, protesters say it is the first time the country's youth have had an opportunity to raise their voice. Kavya, a 20-year-old student who gave only her first name, told AFP she was scared after witnessing police violence on Monday but had no choice but to keep the movement going. Support for the CJP has grown beyond the capital, with smaller protests also held in Mumbai, Bengaluru and Goa.

What has the government said about the protests?

Pradhan, the education minister facing growing pressure over the medical school examination, said the government remained committed to reform and to discussing the issue in parliament. In his first public comments since Monday's protests, he said the students deserve answers, reforms and accountability, along with certainty over chaos and solutions over slogans.