India's Gen Z 'cockroaches' took protest tostreets. Now they rally around hunger strike

NEW DELHI, July 16, (AP): The protest camp came to life as student demonstrators rolled up their bedding after another night under the open sky. At the heart of the camp, activist Sonam Wangchuk lay inside a tent, his weakened frame showing the toll of weeks on hunger strike. "If not fasting, what? Riots in the streets? That’s what we don’t want to do.

So this is a peaceful way to take your voice to the government,” Wangchuk said on a recent afternoon as worried supporters checked on him. The 59-year-old has become an unlikely symbol of India’s Cockroach Janta Party, a youth-led movement that erupted online two months ago and gained momentum over alleged leaks on social media in the country’s fiercely competitive college entrance exams.

With the hunger strike in its third week, organizers are racing to keep pressure on Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government, which they accuse of ignoring their calls for the education minister’s resignation. "There has been no kind of response from the government. They have left Sonam Wangchuk to die,” said Abhijeet Dipke, a Boston University student and founder of the Cockroach Janta Party.

The movement began in May after Supreme Court Chief Justice Surya Kant compared some unemployed young people to "cockroaches" during a hearing on another issue. Supporters embraced the insult as a badge of resilience, turning it into a satirical political campaign that amassed more than 21 million Instagram followers in a few days.

The movement seeks the resignation of the education minister, Dharmendra Pradhan, over the alleged leaks, along with sweeping reforms to the examination system and compensation for families of students who died by suicide, whether over the leaks or exam results. For many young Indians, their future depends on a single entrance exam for government jobs and medical colleges.

Dipke said the movement's online popularity has translated into growing support on the ground. Since its first major demonstration in New Delhi in early June, he said, thousands of supporters have turned out at universities and rallies in other cities. The presence of Wangchuk, a well-known climate activist, shows how the protest has drawn professionals beyond the world of education. High-profile attention is growing.