How India's 'cockroach' movement became a nationwide protest

[00:00:00]But India's education minister, Dharmendra Pradhan, has accused the opposition of using student protesters as political tools as he faces growing pressure to resign.

[00:00:10]>> He made the remark after opposition leader Rahul Gandhi was briefly detained by police while staging a sit-in outside Prime Minister Narendra Modi's residence.

[00:00:26]Several other opposition leaders, including Mr. Gandhi's sister Priyanka, were removed by police during the protests where they demanded accountability over Monday's crackdown on demonstrators. They also called for Prime Minister Modi's resignation. Mr. Gandhi says the protests reflect wider concerns among students and families about the state of India's education system.

[00:00:51]>> Why is the Indian education system collapsing? Why are papers leaking? Why is education so expensive in India? Why do families have to destroy themselves financially to educate their children? These are legitimate questions.

[00:01:07]And there's absolutely nothing wrong with asking these questions.

[00:01:13]>> The Minister Pradhan says the opposition's objective was never to find solutions for students, but rather to create disruption for political headlines. He says he's prepared to address students' concerns in Parliament, but promising accountability and reforms.

[00:01:33]>> Protesters are demanding Mr. Pradhan's resignation amid outrage over alleged widespread cheating in high-stakes entrance exams. Authorities say nearly 180 people, including protesters and police officers, were injured in Monday's unrest. Thousands of supporters of the youth-led cockroach movement returned to the streets yesterday bowing to continue until those behind the exam crisis are punished. Prime Minister Modi has called for accountability and said preventing exam leaks is a national responsibility.

[00:02:08]>> This morning itself, Prime Minister Modi ji gave out a very candid assurance to [snorts] the countrymen that nobody responsible for the paper leakage episodes will go scot-free. Not only that, he went on to say that the severest punishment would be accorded to the persons who are found involved in this. And he also said that we cannot cannot compromise the future of our children at any cost and we will not let that happen.

[00:02:43]>> Well, India's youth-led cockroach movement has evolved into a nationwide protest that all started as an online joke. Back in May, India's top judge referred to some unemployed young people as parasites and cockroaches during a hearing. It quickly went viral. A 30-year-old Boston University graduate, Abhijit Dipke, created a parody website for the Cockroach Janata Party or CJP, described as a home for India's lazy, unemployed, and forgotten. The chief justice later said that he was misquoted, but the damage was done. The cockroach movement quickly widened into one of the largest displays of public dissent against Prime Minister Modi. It has since amassed more than 24 million followers on Instagram. The momentum propelled it into a serious protest group calling for educational reforms following a series of alleged exam leaks. Millions of have had to force to retake the test. A string of student suicides has also been linked to the scandal. The protests were held over the past month culminating in one of the largest anti-government rallies on Monday. Even as that descended into violence, supporters say they will continue demonstrations. Well, But the rise of BJP is a drawing comparisons to other insurgency movements that has swept the South Asian region in recent years, including Bangladesh and Nepal.

[00:04:04]Now, Prime Minister Modi's party, uh BJP, earlier dismissed it as an online gimmick and a premeditated conspiracy created by their political rivals.