Listening to Cockroaches: Why the ‘GenZ’ Jantar Mantar protest is different from any seen before

In Focus by The Hindu · Jul 25, 2026 · 55m

“What if all the cockroaches come together?” That was the one-line tweet, put out by Boston-returned Abhijeet Dipke, on May 16, 2026. In less than two months, we are witness to the ‘cockroaches’ – India’s youth -- coming together to protest at Jantar Mantar, and in different parts of the country.

But this student protest against endemic exam paper leaks is not the first show of mass dissent against the Narendra Modi government. Before this, there has been a farmers’ movement, the anti-CAA protests, and several other protest mobilisations by workers, Dalits, and adivasi communities.

The…